Skip to main content

Dreamers

In the episode - Dreamers  . . .


"If you can Dream it, you can Do it!" He would say.


We met face-to-face one Sunday morning, standing at the entrance to the church after a service held for over 2,500 people.

As we shook hands, our eyes locked together, suddenly I was the only person in this long line of visitors; he greeted me by name with a broad smile as we left the church. It was only the third time we had met, and he remembered my name?


Out of multitudes of people, this man sees every day - how was that possible? Many called him a dreamer. I would come to know him as Dr. Schuller. The lead pastor of Garden Grove Community Church, or at that time, The Crystal Cathedral.


His sermon moved me emotionally much more than I expected. With a booming voice and a wave of his hand, he proclaimed,


"Today's accomplishments were yesterday's impossibilities."


His ministry had stood the test of time and ridicule. Seated in a magnificent all-glass structure with a blue sky above, surrounded by a garden of palm trees, I examined the expressions of the people around me. They, too, were captivated. Listening intently. His passion for his calling was inspirational.


Little did I know this pastor would have a profound effect on my thinking and my life. "Possibility Thinking," he called it. Philosophy with a pragmatic approach to positive results.


To me, this practice has always been known as positive thinking. Decades of young people had read Dr. Norman Vincent Peale's book, The Power of Positive Thinking.


While living in Los Angeles in 1986, the Los Angeles Times announced that Dr. Peale would be speaking at The Crystal Cathedral. I wanted to see it. My first thought was; The Crystal, what? Where is this "Cathedral?" To my surprise, Garden Grove, California, was less than 50 miles from my apartment in Santa Monica. Sunday morning traffic in Los Angeles was light, not the typical freeway parking lot. The drive would be an easy one.


So, without hesitation, Lori and I decided to make the trip to Garden Grove one month before Dr. Peale was to speak. "I'm sure there will be a crowd; let's go early to get the lay of the land. Maybe we can find a way to secure a seat for Dr. Peale's presentation."


We made the trip, and that Sunday morning changed my life. How, you ask? Seated on the balcony, I became intrigued with this idea of possibility thinking: Schuller's presentation, his body language, the use of his voice, and his facial expressions. This pastor focused on the positive possibilities for your life. Not the typical "You're a sinner! Repent!" What every person listening to that day experienced were positive affirmations like this one;


"I would rather attempt to do something great and fail than attempt to do nothing and succeed!"


So, it was that day, from the thrill of the experience, we decided, YES, we're coming back to this church - every week. Through this man, God was changing the world.


Or it was the creator changing me. It didn't matter. 


Suddenly, the lights were turned on; ideas began to leap through my mind, a powerful affirmation of my worth, my newfound awareness of "possibility thinking," my innate abilities, and my aspiration to be the best young educator.


No, it never came to me in those words, but the commitment was engaging and absolute.


It's hard to believe that was over 35 years ago. Much has changed, but what remains is that spark this dreamer lit in me years ago. A flame that grows daily into a new vision for my life.


We all dream. What's yours? The magic of possibility thinking is renewed every day through faith. Believe in yourself; today is a new day; you were put on this earth for a purpose. Discover that purpose; you, too, can change the world. How will you touch someone's life today?


It starts with a dream . . .


This is Patrick Ball; thanks for listening. See you in the next episode.

Labels:
Location: Garden Grove, CA, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Most Popular of All Time

That Fateful Four-Letter Word

In this episode, A Masterclass in Efficiency. For nearly four months, the western border of our property has stood as a living monument to determination, dubious planning, and forensic-level lumber acquisition. Since February, our neighbor Steve has been conducting what can only be described as a masterclass in deliberate calculation. This was never going to be one of those slick home-improvement shows where a cheerful pair of men installs a fence between commercial breaks, sipping lemonade. No. This was real life in retirement. We scaled the vertical wilderness of our hillside. We mixed concrete with the precision of medieval alchemists. We bled, we sweated, and we fought hand-to-hand with a buried tree stump that had the structural integrity of a Cold War bunker. By this week—May 16th, for those keeping score—the glorious end was finally within reach. The fence stood proudly, the line was straight, and victory practically hummed in the air. Only one major task remained: installing t...
Post a Comment
Read more

Truth for Sale

This episode is inspired  by Elton John & Bernie Taupin On Memorial Day, I took my first bike ride  since the accident , seeking proof that my legs, lungs, and nerves still remembered the road. The morning air carried that familiar Southern California mix of ocean haze, exhaust, eucalyptus, and sun-baked asphalt. My tires hummed across pavement I’ve ridden for years. Somewhere between the steady click of the chain and the rhythm of my breathing, Elton John and Bernie Taupin’s The Captain and the Kid found its way into my ears. There’s a strange kind of magic when the cadence of a ride syncs perfectly with a song you know by heart. Suddenly, the music and lyrics stop being background noise and become a lens. And through that lens, the road started talking. I've been cycling on this road some, Can't help feeling I've been showing my friends around. I've seen it grow from next to nothing, To a giant eatin’ up our town. Called up the tealeaves and the tarots, Asked the...
Post a Comment
Read more

When Nature Comes to You

Sometimes the best way to experience the world isn’t to go searching for it, but to sit still and let it come to you. Lately, the view from my reading chair has become a vibrant little stage. Our backyard feeder has drawn a steady parade of wildlife—bold flashes of blue from the Western Scrub Jays, brilliant bursts of color from the Hooded Orioles, and Purple Finches—transforming quiet afternoons into a chorus of motion and song. But the most captivating performance unfolds just inches beyond my window. For the past couple of weeks, a young hummingbird mother has been perched on her tiny, beautifully woven nest. Hummingbirds usually seem made of pure nervous energy, yet here she is: perfectly still, patient, and devoted. Watching her quiet vigil - day after day - has felt almost magical. Life seems to be blooming in every direction right now, renewing itself in real time. It’s a gentle reminder to slow down, look outside, and notice the quiet miracles surrounding us. John Muir once wro...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Eighth Wonder of the Suburban World

Mark your calendars, folks. Update the history books. Notify the Smithsonian. Move over, Pyramids of Egypt. Step aside, Hoover Dam.  Future civilizations will speak of this day in hushed, reverent tones. May 22, 2026, will forever be remembered as the moment humanity reached the pinnacle of suburban engineering excellence. Earlier today, my neighbor Steve and I drove the final screw into what can only be described as the most overbuilt property divider in North County. The Fence! And then there’s the gate. Good grief, the gate. Calling it just a gate is almost disrespectful. It looks like the entrance to a medieval fortress or to Hogwarts Castle. It swings open with the heft of a bank vault and closes with the wave of a magic wand. At this point, we’re considering applying for FAA clearance to install a helicopter pad on top of it. This glorious odyssey began in early February, the primitive era. From the start, we made a sacred pact: we would not become one of those people. You ...
Post a Comment
Read more