A prayer for when you grieve the loss of a dream, written by Ashley Slater and read by Kelly

Givens. Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in me.

John 14. 1. If you'd ask me at the age of 6 what I wanted to be when I grew up, I'd have answered, a teacher.

Once I hit my teens, my answer changed though.

The allure of instructing others were off, replaced by a desire to work in the entertainment industry.

I felt called to be a television producer and pursued this school all the way through grad school.

But something happened as I worked toward a master's degree that I didn't anticipate.

I met and married my husband Ted. Not long after, in the midst of writing my graduate

prospectus, two faint pink lines appeared on a pregnancy test. Suddenly, my dream wasn't so easy. If my studies and student

film set experience had taught me anything, it was this. My career aspirations,

if achieved, would require long days and maybe even regular travel.

I found myself questioning how I would personally balance that, along with caring for my growing family. It was then that I

sensed God calling me to lay down my dream, the one I'd worked hard toward for

gears. As difficult as it was, I did, but as I talk about in my book, Braving Sorrowed

together, the transformative power of faith and community when life is hard. I went on to grieve that loss for years. Here are three ways to

grieve the loss of your dream. Maybe you're currently grieving the loss of your own dream.

Perhaps it isn't career-related, as it was for me.

Instead, maybe marriage or becoming a mother hasn't happened for you as you'd hoped it would. It's possible that you're in a season of prolonged

singleness when you long to be married or you've recently walked through divorce. Maybe you face

the heartbreaking pain of infertility.

As a result, you are well acquainted with the words of Proverbs 1312 about how hope deferred makes the heart sick.

What are some ways you and I can grieve the loss of our individual dreams,

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