Dreams

The dreams that I have while I sleep are often strange entertainment. Rarely do they make any sense and they often make me wonder what the heck is going on inside my head. I’ve had dreams of flying, dreams where I couldn’t pedal a bike, and my least-favorite-of-all-dreams where I am reliving a job from my past and I’m in trouble because I forgot to do something. When I wake up I simply have to remind myself that it was just a dream and I’m not really going to get fired. Then there are those dreams that we remembered we had, but we can’t remember what they’re about. Often all I really remember are the emotions I had while I was dreaming.

Experts say that dreams or our minds way of reshuffling our stored information and memories to allow us to make room for more. Which makes perfect sense and even gives me some peace about the randomness of my dreams, but then there are those dreams that are incredibly vivid and detailed. You know exactly who is in them and exactly where you are at. And I have to wonder if there isn’t something more going on in that moment of thought within my grey matter. Like something profoundly spiritual is happening.

The bible is filled with references to dreams being a method of how God got someone’s attention and motivated them to act or respond. We see them in both the old and new testaments and because of the response to those dreams lives were changed and God’s purposes were realized. If this is the case, then I think the dreams that have that deeper affect on us should cause us to not just sit up in bed, but to motivate us to live differently.

We often refer to the hopes and aspirations of a person as their dreams. And at the same time we know that we don’t control the dreams we have while sleeping, but God can and does speak into some of them. Therefore, I believe that the dreams that come from God are all about the things He desires us to know and realize. God inspired dreams can be about what burden’s Him or what concerns Him, all to draw attention to His plan and will. Some dreams are a portal into the heart of God.

“And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days.” – Joel 2:28-19

So what are we supposed to do when we have these types of dreams? Respond. Don’t just dismiss them as random, purposeless, memory shuffling synapses. Pray for understanding, reach out to those who you dreamt about, and go with what you think God wants you to do. In this way our dreams can have the profound affect God intends for them.

And I’m one of those people that doesn’t even dream in color! What’s up with that!