Dreaming with God by Sarah Beth Marr {A Book Review}

**I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for consideration. All thoughts are 100% my own. 

The world tells us that the way to make all our dreams come true is to set our own course and strive every day. But when it's all on us, we end up feeling exhausted, frustrated, and, disappointed when things don't turn out as we'd hoped. Have you ever wondered if there was a better way?

There is. God knows the desires of our hearts--he put them there. And he calls us to trust, to lean on him, and sometimes . . . to wait. Weaving together her unique perspective as a professional ballerina with profound truths drawn from Scripture and the life of faith, Sarah Beth Marr reminds us that we are not dreaming alone. If God has given us a dream, we can be sure that he will come alongside us as we work toward realizing it. Using her own story as a catalyst, Marr encourages women to surrender their plans to God, to stay in tempo with his Spirit, and to step into a deeper relationship with Christ. When they do, she says, they will be able to move confidently into the future, knowing that their dreams and God's desires are aligned in perfect harmony.

Sarah Beth Marr danced professionally for more than fifteen years as a ballerina and is the author of Dreaming with God. She now encourages women in the dance of life and faith through her writing, speaking at MOPS International groups and women's events, and teaching the Word. She and her husband, Brian, have three sons and live in Dallas, Texas. Learn more at www.sarahbethmarr.com.

In our society, there is a LOT of talk about following your dreams. We always tell our children that they can be anything they want and encourage them to strive to reach them. In and of itself, this isn't a bad message... following our dreams is important. It's how we get there however that makes the difference. To follow our dreams, we MUST put God at the center of it all. This book is a beautiful reminder of that.

Sarah Beth Marr uses her experience as a professional ballet dancer to beautifully illustrate that we must trust God with our dreams. She does so with beautiful ballet inspired metaphors throughout. This makes it a fantastic choice for dancers, but don't worry- even if you're not familiar with the ballet terms used throughout, she does a great job of illustrating the points regardless of our ballet knowledge (my own being only the basics!). She also includes a glossary of ballet terms to help us out. Personally, I have always been fascinated by the subject of dance so I really enjoyed this aspect of the book... but it really does offer insights that can be applied to everyone.

At the end of each chapter, you will find a prayer, a variety of scriptures related to that chapter and a series of questions that will help you dig deeper into the messages. There is some room to respond within the pages, but you might find you want to use a journal for more room too.

Overall, this is a great read for anyone who needs a little encouragement in following their dreams and following God's role in it all. Whether you are a ballet dancer or not, this is a good read.