I fulfilled another item on my bucket list. I met Billy Graham.

Billy had come to speak at Campbellsville University, and I found myself alone in a room with him. Often people will say “Where do you pastor?” (I don’t) or “Where do you preach?” (I don’t) but Billy asked an interesting question that you might use in your interaction with people who are serious about their faith. He said “Where do you practice ministry?”

Hmmm. Now that’s a good way to say it. I am in the practice of ministry, as all Christ followers are to be. If we assume that everyone who follows Christ is “in ministry” (they aren’t, but they are supposed to be) then “Where do you practice ministry?” is a creative and memorable way of asking “Where are you from.”

I like it!

Here are some other things that were interesting:

1. Billy has an iPhone. I know because he whipped it out wanting me to listen to a recording of something his son Franklin had said.
2. He was pleased that North Carolina had recently codified marriage as between one man and one woman.
3. He had fairly long hair, and a wispy beard—the hairs of which were twisted into small ponytails and tied with rubber bands.

By now you’ve figured it out. I didn’t REALLY meet Billy Graham—in person. I met him in a dream, just last night. My personal friend and physician, Steve, says that I have a more vivid and technicolor dream life than most people. I’ll take that! It’s important to have dreams.

I can’t tell you why I dreamed I met Billy Graham. I don’t expect that will ever happen. He’s getting on in years and is declining in health, and I no longer travel in circles that would likely put us together. But I think its interesting that I dreamed it, and at one time that really WAS on my bucket list.

What chance is there you’ll achieve something—either awake or asleep—that’s on your bucket list? If you don’t have a list in the first place, there’s a 100% chance you’ll achieve it all. Mark Batterson said in his book The Circle Maker “A litmus test of spiritual maturity is whether your dreams are getting bigger or smaller.” As we get older, its easy to let our dreamer shrink as well. Don’t do it! The older you get the bigger you should dream. I’ve been dreaming and praying about Nicaragua for a while, and suddenly last night I found Sudan in my dreams as well. I don’t know what that means. I’ve never even been to the African continent. But I’ve helped starving people in Sudan—in my dreams. This morning I started praying about it; asking God what He wanted and telling Him what I’d do if he enabled it. Who knows?

What are your dreams? Tell me what is the most God-sized thing on your bucket list?