Viewpoint by The Reverend Chris Shreeve,
Methodist Minister working in the rural part
of the East Norfolk Circuit in the Fleggs.
 
This Sunday, across the United States, many will honour the memory of  Martin Luther King.  A black, Baptist minister, King worked for equal rights, but - 45 years ago - was shot to death. In a 17-minute speech he made "I Have a Dream" delivered in 1963, King called for an end to racism in the United States. The speech was a defining moment of the American Civil Rights Movement.  As a result, King was named Man of the Year by TIME magazine for 1963, and in 1964, he was the youngest person ever awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. His death did not stop his dream.
 
King’s faith that his dream would come about was grounded in his Christian faith, and stated in these words: “I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.”  Not founded in human resource, but based firmly upon God.
           
I am convinced that Dr. King’s vision still rings out for us today. To face, and to deal with, the challenges of unemployment, failing economy, illness, injustice, and poverty needs the power of a holy imagination to deliver us from hopelessness and open the door to new possibilities. Trouble can constrict our vision, imprisoning us in the pain of the present moment, unable to look beyond our own personal misfortunes. At such times, we lose our dreams, mistaking realism for reality. Our goal is merely to survive, when our God-given destiny is to thrive.
 
It takes all the energy we have to look beyond our misfortunes and failures, but this larger vision - the power of the holy imagination, the call of our God to a new way - has always been the inspiration for the prophet and spiritual guide. The dream reminds us that within what we perceive as limits are possibilities for adventure and growth. Frank Sinatra sang “To dream the impossible dream, To fight the unbeatable foe, To bear with unbearable sorrow, To run where the brave dare not go....’ 
 
Rev King called all who trust God to dream impossible dreams of a better world.  Whatever your faith, grasp this dream and step out into its coming.