It’s something we all dream about at some point, isn’t it? Where we will live when we finally arrive at the life we are working toward. You know, the white picket fence — the American Dream.

For some it’s small and quaint. For others is expansive and out-of-the-way. For my daughter, at least at this point, the only requirement would be that it is pink!

For us, this is the ultimate dream house. We love the color variations in the rock, the tin roof and how the paint connects it all together. And then there are the dormer windows and the columns on the porch that break up the lines and draw your eye in. There’s just not much wrong with this house, other than…it’s not a house! It’s a bank in Cameron, TX.

Kristen and I drive by this beautiful structure every time we head south to visit her parents in Round Top. We love looking at it and dreaming of what could be in the future. It’s a constant reminder of the life we’d like to have.

It’s amazing how tied we are to houses in our culture. We go into unbelievable debt for them. We work two jobs and make double payments so we can afford them. And we USED to agree to ridiculous mortgage schemes in order to get into a house that we really had no business buying in the first place. We do all of this working toward that perfect dream, just knowing that when we get there all will be right in the world.

Question: What if we put that much effort in building a different house? A house of peace? A house that constantly carried the presence of Jesus. A house that became a blessing to everyone who entered it. What if instead of working two jobs for brick and mortar we actually quit a job to build a house that lasts? What would our homes be like if we were OK to live in half the square footage in order to have more time investing in our children? What if the “American Dream” is actually the greatest threat to the greatest desires of our hearts?

Kristen and I still love that house and we may or may not ever build it. But one thing I know, if we do build it, it will be done in freedom, not bondage. It will be a blessing and not a curse. Because that’s not the house that I really dream about when I close my eyes at night.