Trusting God with What You’re Picking Back Up | Your Nightly Prayer

Have you ever walked away from a dream, opportunity, or goal only to have it unexpectedly return years later? Maybe you thought that chapter of your life was finished. Perhaps God clearly led you in another direction, circumstances forced you to let something go, or what you once desperately wanted simply didn’t happen. But now the door seems to be opening again—and you’re wondering whether God might be asking you to try one more time.

In this Your Nightly Prayer devotional, Britt Mooney shares how his youthful dream of becoming a Christian rock star eventually gave way to God’s calling into missions, pastoring, and writing. Years later, when an opportunity to make music returned, he faced an important realization: he couldn’t approach an old dream with the same motivations and expectations he had when he was younger. Instead of simply asking whether the project could succeed, he needed to ask what God wanted from it now.

Based on Psalm 37:5, this devotional explores how Christians can discern God’s direction when an old dream, abandoned goal, unexpected opportunity, or familiar responsibility comes back into their lives. How do you know when God is asking you to try again? How can you tell whether your motives are rooted in obedience or a desire for recognition and worldly success? And what does it look like to faithfully take the next step without trying to control the outcome?

Sometimes God asks us to release a dream completely. Other times, He may allow us to return to it with a different heart, a different purpose, and a healthier definition of success. If you’re reconsidering something you once gave up, tonight’s prayer will encourage you to examine your motives, seek God’s direction, take the next faithful step, and trust Him with whatever happens next.