The Sound of a Million Dreams: Awakening to Who You Are Becoming
What does a dream sound like? "The first time the sound of a dream slammed, hard, in the center of my spirit, was almost a decade ago. It's the sound that has led me on the journey whose threads are pulled through this book, an intimate pilgrimage, often ironically nomadic, that I've struggled to comprehend; it's been unlike anything else I've ever known. It happened in a coffee shop during my thirtieth year, and in less than two hours it caused me to listen to my life anew." In these pages writer and speaker Suanne Camfield writes of the varied dreams that she has pursued over the course of her life. With captivating and eloquent stories and concepts, she guides us through what it feels like to have a stirring deep inside of us and how God guides and shapes us through that sense of calling. This is not a book primarily about vocation or even discernment. It is a book about being a dreamer who is shaped by God. It is about having the wisdom and courage to step into the places of our most vulnerable longing.
Foreword by Adele Calhoun
1. Ashes
2. The First Sound I Remember
3. In the Meantime
4. Stirrings
5. Be When I Grow Up
6. Picture Frames
7. Courage
8. Choices
9. Voices
10. Naming
11. Rushing
12. Present
13. Ordinary
14. Comparison
15. Becoming
16. Broken Dreams
17. Shame
18. Longing
19. Faithfulness
20. Beautiful
Epilogue: In My Wildest Dreams
Acknowledgments
"Part poet, part philosopher, part penitent, and always a keen-eyed observer and exquisite writer, Suanne Camfield is above all a coach like her father, although this time she encourages us all to a deeper experience of the Stirring and the Becoming. The Sound of a Million Dreams is a book to read slowly and savor long."
"From the first page, I was drawn into one woman's honest journey through broken dreams and unrealized expectations, into the darkest places of her humanity and out the other side. There she finds herself, finds grace, finds wisdom. This is a beautifully written, introspective, and achingly honest book with so much to discover and savor."
"In her beautifully written book, Suanne Camfield invites us to uncover our dreams, even those that lie shattered on the ground. By vulnerably sharing her own story, she encourages us to dig deep and interact with our dreams in a way that moves us toward who we really are, not just what we want to do."
"Few books so brilliantly and beautifully describe the process by which one awakens to a personal dream and then dares to discipline oneself to pursue it as this amazing breakout work by Suanne Camfield. In the course of describing the fears, tears, and laughter that marked her own journey toward fulfillment, Camfield inspires all of us to begin listening for the yearning voice in ourselves that might be calling us to the life we are meant to live."
"With artful and energetic prose, Suanne Camfield has written an original and honest memoir of her life with all its beauty, complexity, and passion. As you read The Sound of a Million Dreams you will find yourself in the company of a woman on a relentless quest to understand and trust the stirring within her to follow a lifelong dream. She will put words to the very experiences you've had in stumbling forward in search of your dreams. And somewhere along the line you will catch her fervor and realize there's no turning back. I commend this book to anyone who loves exquisite writing, rich story, and real life!"
"An absolute must-read for anyone who has ever feared, wondered, or second guessed themselves as they tried to make their way through this life! Suanne is a master at helping the reader feel known, safe, and befriended on the journey of the soul. She is a brilliant writer and a fellow pilgrim. I giggled and cried and realized again that there are no easy answers. All we have is the sound of our dreams, the vivid echoes and invitations from God to be who we truly are. Find yourself on the journey as you read this book. Camfield is brilliant!"
"Suanne Camfield's writing is vivid and lyrical, nearly every sentence like a pearl plucked from the mouth of an oyster. This book has enriched my life, daring me not just to dream but to become."
"The Sound of a Million Dreams simultaneously embraces me right where I am while beautifully beckoning me one step further. Through her intensely honest pilgrimage, Suanne Camfield woos me to become fully who I already am in Jesus."
"The Sound of a Million Dreams offers readers encouragement and the steady reminder that God is in control as readers consider following their own dreams."
"Camfield's richly detailed memoir of a lifetime of dreams is both insightful and reassuring."
Product Details
- Title : The Sound of a Million Dreams: Awakening to Who You Are Becoming
- Authors:
- Camfield, Suanne
- Calhoun, Adele Ahlberg
- Publisher: IVP Books
- Publication Date: 2017
- ISBN: 9780830892235
Adele Ahlberg Calhoun (MA, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary) has worked in Christian ministry for over forty years. She and her husband, Doug, currently work with Highrock Church in Arlington, Massachusetts, and work with retreats, the Enneagram, and leader resourcing nationally and internationally. Adele is the author of Spiritual Disciplines Handbook, Invitations from God and the coauthor of True You and Women Identity. Previously, Adele and her husband copastored Redeemer Community Church in Needham, Massachusetts, and she was formerly pastor of spiritual formation at Christ Church in Oak Brook, Illinois. A retreat speaker and trained spiritual director, she has taught courses at Wheaton College and Northern Seminary. In the early 1970s she helped pioneer student work with the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students in Southeast Asia and the Middle East. She has also worked with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship in New England and Canada and with the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students in the West Indies and South Africa.
Suanne Camfield is women's director at Christ Church of Oak Brook as well as a writer and speaker. She previously served as development director for Caris, a pregnancy resource and counseling center. She was also an assistant editor and publicist at InterVarsity Press and the blog manager for FullFill, a nonprofit focused on mobilizing women to invest their influence in the world for God's purposes. She is a founding member of the Redbud Writers Guild. Suanne frequently teaches to communities of all ages at her church, preaches an occasional sermon, and speaks at a variety of other women's events. She has written for Strangely Dim, Her.meneutics, Kyria, MomSense, Gifted for Leadership and was a contributor to the Every Day Matters Bible and the MOPS devotional Always There. Suanne and her husband Eric, a pastor at Christ Church of Oak Brook, live in the Chicago suburbs with their two children.