How many people can relate to this?

When you heard that the jackpot was up to 391 million dollars, you rushed out to purchase tickets for the MegaMillion drawing this month and dreamed and fantasized about winning and what you would do with the money.  You selected the "cash option" so that you would not have to be paid out over the course of 20 years.  Even though you heard on the radio that you have a better chance of being struck by lightening two times in row, you are convinced that you have a real shot at winning.  The MegaMillions site says that the "Overall chances of winning a prize are 1 in 40. Chances of winning the jackpot are 1 in 175,711,536" but you are sure that the next jackpot winner will be YOU.

You wait for the drawing only to be disappointed and upset when your numbers do not match the winning numbers.  But wait a minute! You took a Risk, right?  You had a dream and you took the risk.  Didn't your parents tell you to "follow your dreams" and to "dream big?" After all, it's not impossible there was a Chance of winning the jackpot of 1 in 175,711,536, remember? In Proverbs 12:11, The bible says "He who works his land will have abundant food, But he who chases fantasies lacks judgment." 

We are all guilty of chasing fantasies.  The problem with this is that it can be a dangerous thing to chase your dreams. The realization of dreams is certainly not impossible, but in general, the proverb says that people who chase their dreams, or their fantasies, lack judgment. They are unable to discern what is really possible, so more often than not, they come to ruin.

Maybe the point of the verse in Proverbs is that we need to be more realistic. Taking risks is okay, but taking risks blindly is not. "Chasing fantasies" might be a way of describing people who have desires about how they want to be, or how they want things to be, but not having any idea about the feasibility of it, or the cost of it. That lack of knowledge is expensive, in life terms.

Do you spend more time thinking about the potential rewards of your work than you do actually working? Would you consider yourself to be "a dreamer" and often find yourself chasing unrealistic dreams and goals only to be disappointed when you come to the realization that the dream did not come true?  If the dream is the only thing that keeps you going, then keep dreaming but realize that it probably will not come true.

This can be true about work, so many of us want to be an overnight success and get-rich-quick, after all it is not impossible and there are people who have done it.  I've heard that any "idiot can start a business and be a millionaire, why can't I?" How many of you have had huge, grandiose dreams for your business or personal life that just did not pan out as fast as you anticipated?  Were you disappointed, upset and feeling slighted when things did not go your way?  So many people give up and businesses fail when they are chasing dreams and fantasies instead of being grounded in the reality that there is only ONE thing that will pay off big time and that is hard work.  Sometimes you have to face reality that you might not be the Number one, overnight success that you dreamed of.  A million dollars did not fall out of the sky and land in your lap.

The true rewards in life come from hard work and sacrifice.  "The opposite of diligence and hard work is laziness. The lazy seek to avoid work altogether. Since they must make money to live they turn toward schemes and get-rich-quick offers. Proverbs teaches us that these alternatives to work will not succeed. (1)"

"The one who works his land
    will have plenty of food, ^(AB)
    but whoever chases fantasies
    will have his fill of poverty."

-Proverbs 28.19

"Whoever works his land will have plenty to eat, but the one who chases unrealistic dreams has no sense."

-Proverbs 12:11.

*1. Wisdom and Wealth (Part II) By: Bob Deffinbaugh , Th.M, http://www.bible.org/page.php?page_id=637