Don’t Bury Your Dream! – Bishop T.D. Jakes
In life, many of us harbor a dream deep within our hearts, a vision that God himself may have planted. Yet, when life’s trials stack up, when heartbreak or loss makes hope seem foolish, those dreams can feel impossible to pursue. Today, let’s dig deep into the powerful biblical lessons contained in the story of a woman whose experience shows us we must never bury our dreams, no matter how impossible things may seem.
The Story Behind the Promise
In 2 Kings, there’s an incredible account of two women whose paths cross the prophet Elisha. Each of their struggles reveals something vital about how God meets us in our needs, regardless of our status or situation.
The Poor Woman and the Oil
The first woman, widow and deeply in debt, faces the very real possibility of losing her children to slavery as payment to creditors. In her darkest hour, Elisha asks, “What do you have in your house?” She offers what little is left—a small jar of oil. Following Elisha’s instructions to fill borrowed vessels, her obedience opens a miraculous flow. The oil does not stop running until every vessel is filled. As long as she had capacity—vessels prepared and faith willing to move—God continued to pour out blessings.
This initial miracle teaches us that no matter how empty our situation appears, if we have even a little faith and obedience, God can multiply it into abundance. Are you making room for God’s outpouring, or have you given up when it looks like you have nothing?
The Rich Woman’s Hidden Emptiness
The second story shifts dramatically—from poverty to prosperity. Here is a woman of means, blessed with wealth and status, secure in her home and marriage. Outwardly, she appears to lack nothing. Yet her true poverty is hidden: she has no child. Her material blessings do not fill the emptiness she carries inside.
It’s a reminder that need wears many faces. While some suffer in ways that are obvious, others struggle with silent, aching dreams they no longer dare to voice.
Hospitality Makes Room for a Miracle
This wealthy woman goes so far as to build a special room for Elisha. She doesn’t ask for anything in return—her giving is pure and bountiful. Elisha, recognizing her heart, asks his servant what she needs. When it’s revealed she has no son, Elisha prophesies that by this time next year, she will cradle a child of her own.
Fear to Hope: Dreaming Hurts
At first, she resists. After years of disappointment, her heart is armored against hope. Maybe you’ve been there—learned to settle, to convince yourself that “it is well” while your soul aches for unspoken dreams. Sometimes the fear of hope deferred makes us reluctant to dream again. We bury our desires, anxious that wanting will only lead to more pain.
But God works best in our brokenness. In His timing, He revives things long thought dead. Her dream is not only acknowledged; it’s promised. The lesson? Even if you’ve closed the door on what seems impossible, God can open it wide—especially when you least expect it.
When Your Dream Seems to Die
The prophecy comes true. The woman receives her miracle. She embraces motherhood, her dream fulfilled. Yet, unexpectedly, tragedy strikes: her son grows ill and dies. In her heartbreak, she lays the boy not in a tomb, but on the prophet’s bed—the very place where the promise began. She refuses to prepare for burial, refuses to surrender her hope to death. She takes action, seeking God’s intervention again, refusing to let her dream die.
Faith Takes the Long Road
The mother’s urgency is palpable: she saddles a donkey and rushes to find Elisha, brushing aside her husband’s confusion and others’ concerns. “It shall be well,” she insists—even while her soul is in turmoil.
How often do we try to move forward looking calm on the surface, while inside we’re desperate for God? This mother’s story reminds us to go directly to the source—a lesson in persistent faith and unwavering trust even when circumstances declare defeat.
The Miracle of Revival
Elisha sends his servant ahead, but nothing happens until the prophet himself enters the room. He shuts the door, stretches himself over the lifeless child, and prays fervently—mouth to mouth, eyes to eyes, hands to hands—until warmth returns to the boy’s body. Seven sneezes later, the child lives again. This isn’t just a medical marvel—it’s a holy completion. Seven is the biblical number for completion, for fulfillment.
God does not leave a promise unfinished. He doesn’t tease us with hope just to abandon us in disappointment. He completes what He begins.
Don’t Mistake Delay for Denial
If your dream has suffered a blow—if what you asked God for has “died”—remember: pause is not the same as burial. There’s a difference between a temporary setback and a final ending. This mother models a faith that refuses to bury God’s promise even when all evidence points to defeat.
The right response is to bring your broken dream back to the place of its origin—back to God’s word, His presence, His promise. Let Him complete the work He started.
Capacity for Blessing—What’s in Your House?
Both women teach us something crucial: capacity. Blessing flows to where there’s room. The poor widow’s jars could only be filled as long as there were empty vessels. The rich woman’s heart made room—not just for Elisha, but for the blessing she’d secretly stopped hoping for. In both cases, God’s supply never runs dry; He’s only waiting for us to make space through faith and expectation.
What have you given up on? Is there space in your
