Last weekend we started working on a big project. My wife and I love gardening; in fact, we have many plants in pots that are anxiously awaiting new homes.

So we decided that we needed a new flower bed. We have thought about putting in a new bed for about a year, but we are glad we didn't do it last year because of the drought. Last weekend, after much thought, we finally began work on the project.

I got out the tiller on Friday night after supper and started to work up the soil. I worked until very late Friday evening and then I was up relatively early on Saturday morning trying to get all the grass out of new bed. We made a trip to Lowe's right before lunch to get some amenities for the soil. By late afternoon, I began planting some of the foundation bushes for the new bed.

I will confess that I did plant a couple of the bushes on Sunday afternoon because I ran out of energy and daylight on Saturday evening. Every time we do a big project like this I have to relearn a basic lesson: I am not in my 20s any longer. I used to be able to work long and hard outside and recover quickly from my labor. That, I am afraid, is no longer the case. My muscles are complaining loudly about what I put them through over the weekend. Most of that came from trying to break up this hard clay soil we have in this part of North Carolina.

I don't mind the sore, stiff muscles when I consider the outcome from all the hard work. I actually enjoy working outside, especially when I know that my efforts are helping us reach our dreams. We've dreamt of having multiple flower beds where we can try out all kinds of different plants. We enjoy going to public gardens and garden centers where we can discover new and unusual plants for our yard. Then we both take great joy in planting things and watching them grow.

One of our dreams is to have a beautiful, peaceful yard, a refuge we can return to every day after work to rejuvenate our spirits. So we are willing to work hard to achieve this dream and to enjoy the process as we go along. I believe that dreams are meant to guide us, give us hope, and to push us to work hard so they will be fulfilled. I believe that visions and dreams are tools God uses to communicate with us about the future, the destiny he wants us to experience.

I believe that every person has a God-given destiny to fulfill in their lives. Some are awesome, earth-shattering, generation-changing dreams whose impact will ripple for many years to come. Take someone like Billy Graham, who has pursued a relationship with God and has been given the opportunity to touch the world with the gospel. The hard work, long hours of sweat, blood and tears has changed the destiny of many people's lives for eternity.

I believe that some people have simpler dreams that are just as important. They aren't looking to change the world, just their little corner. Their destiny is to lead quiet lives, obedient to the laws of the land, loving their families, serving God in simple and humble ways, and yet impacting those around them in profound ways. They live under the radar, yet they are the very fragrance of a loving, compassionate God.

Whether your dreams are larger than life or simple, it's important to know the author of your dreams. The foundation of all our dreams is based on an intimate relationship with our Heavenly Father. Knowing and loving God is more important than anything we could ever accomplish with our lives. The reason we were created was to have a relationship with God and to let others around us know about his love. Ultimately, fulfilling your dreams is all about being faithful to your creator.

I want to encourage you to build your relationship with God first, then seek to fulfill your dreams. Your relationship with God is the basis upon which you will have an impact on others. God-inspired visions and dreams begin in relationship with God and end in pointing others to the very existence of God. So pursue your dreams passionately; let nothing stop you from seeing them fulfilled.

Doug Creamer teaches marketing at East Davidson High School. His Web site is www.dougcreamer.com.

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