"For God may speak in one way or in another, yet man does not perceive it. In a dream, in a vision of the night, while slumbering on their beds, then He opens the ears of men, and seals their instruction."
Job 33:14-16
Let's continue with more dream interpretation. If you are new to this blog, please go back and look at previous entries. The information contained here is different from secular dream interpretation. Again, we are talking about how to know if God is communicating with you in your dreams. It is my contention that He does and will. With that said, let's look at another dream I had a few months ago.
I dreamed that my husband and I walked into a shopping mall. It looked very odd inside. There was only a little light shining. Many of the stores were closed and had signs on them that said, "Closed due to No Power." Some stores were open, but they didn't have much light either. A few did. We walked around wondering what to do. We couldn't get what we came for with these circumstances. We started walking toward the food court. There was some light shining down there and a few people were sitting around eating. Then I woke up and started laughing at this one.
Another rule of Christian dream interpretation is to see how the symbolism may fit into your current life situation. In looking at the dream above, would it help you to know that we had been "shopping" for a church for a long time and couldn't find anything near us that was a good fit? Knowing that, you can see that the stores inside the mall represents churches in our area. While in reality, those churches don't have signs on the doors that say, "Closed due to No Power" - they might as well. I'm not naming names. But, we have all seen or been in such churches. Sadly, we seem to have more than normal in our area. The bright spot of the dream was that there were a few people eating at the food court. In other words, food was still available to eat. It helps to know how to feed yourself anyway, and not only depend on someone else to feed you spiritually. Praise God, He has now lead us to a good church. It is a 40 minute drive one way. That's better than 1 hour we have driven before. Some things are worth driving for. A really good church is one of them.
Speaking of eating, here is another dream that involves food. This one was about 1 year ago. I dreamed I was very busy at work. It was late in the day and I needed to leave because I had company coming for dinner. I needed to get home and cook. But, someone kept piling work up on my desk. I was getting very frustrated. I was finally able to leave and rushed home to start dinner. Much to my horror, my guest was already there. In the dream, I obviously knew who he was, but didn't recognize him in my real life (to begin with.) I was running around the kitchen trying to get everything ready as quickly as I could. I put a roast in the oven. Later, I pulled it out and it was burned and smoking. I started crying. I was embarrassed and nothing was going right. I turned around in the kitchen to see my "Guest" with a big smile on His face. He was holding a beautiful silver platter loaded with gorgeous fruit and cheese and crackers. He said, "Let's eat!". Then I woke up.
When I told my mother about this dream, she said it reminded her of the Bible story about Mary and Martha, when Jesus came to visit. She was definitely on the right track. This is how the Lord can speak to you in your dreams. He made it very plain to me that, like Martha, I was very busy with "good works" and the daily business of life. In the process, I was not taking advantage of just having good fellowship with Jesus. He will feed us if we will take time to spend with Him. He brought Revelation 3:20 to mind. This verse is not actually about salvation, although it is often used that way. It was written to believers. Jesus said, Behold, I stand at the door and knock. Whoever hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and dine with him and he with Me. That is exactly what this dream was about.
How good is God to show me that? He used this dream to get me back on track. This is the kind of thing He will do for you, too. Ask Him to speak to you at night and then expect Him to. Have faith. I hope you are encouraged and looking forward to sleeping tonight. Until next time....
Sweet dreams,
Melody Jemison
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Monday, December 19, 2011
Basics of Christian Dream Interpretation - Part 1
"For God may speak in one way or in another, yet man does not perceive it. In a dream, in a vision of the night, while slumbering on their beds, then He opens the ears of men, and seals their instruction."
Job 33:14-16
The premise of this blog is that God can and will talk to us through our dreams - if we pay attention. How do we know if a dream is from God? First of all, we have to be able to remember some part of it. If all you remember is sketchy, mumbo-jumbo that fades within minutes of waking - then I believe it is safe to assume that was not a "God" dream. I believe that one reason God will communicate with us at night is because that is the only time we are not consumed with doing something else. He can actually get through to us then - if we allow Him.
We tend to be so busy during the day and evening hours. Many of us are addicted to noise and sound. We always have the TV, music, radio, computer or video games going. How are we supposed to hear from God with all that racket? I'm not just preaching to you, I was the worse offender for many years. That's another story. But, I finally learned to keep all of that to a minimum, except my praise and worship music and videos. When I did that, the spiritual atmosphere in my home and car totally changed. It's a decision I have to make every day. I can easily be pulled into watching TV, hour after hour, or mindlessly surfing the web for an entire evening.
Even harmless things like watching funny animal videos can be a distraction. Then, at some point, I find myself too tired to read my Bible or have any meaningful time with God. We all need some down time. That's not what I'm talking about. But, we also need to have some discipline in our lives to do those things that are most important and beneficial to us. Same thing with exercise....I know, you don't want to go there. Let's get back to dreams.
For a Christian, a dream is likely from God, when it is vivid and clear enough that you remember all, or most of it - with some details. We've all had dreams like that, but most people don't realize God is trying to tell them something. I believe that for most Christians, the dreams will be fairly simple and not very complex. I'm giving general rules here. There are always exceptions.
When is a dream not from God? Usually, when you wake up terrified, as with a nightmare. Again, there can be exceptions, but in general, those type dreams come from the enemy, who wants to torment you. I suffered from those dreams from early childhood until about 7 years ago, when I finally found out how to get rid of them. Almost every night, I had nightmares. Now, I have only had maybe 2 or 3 in the past 7 years! I will cover that in one of the upcoming posts.
So, what does all this crazy stuff mean that I dream about? Again, keeping the biblical perspective, I would tell you to always look for symbolism that God used in the Bible. That assumes, as a Christian you know at least a little about your Bible. Let me give you some common examples. Think of the different analogies that Jesus, Luke and Paul used in describing the Holy Spirit. Water, fire, wind and wine can all be symbolic of the Holy Spirit. For example, I recently had a simple dream in which I saw a swimming pool. I love to swim. So, I jumped right in and tried to swim. Once in the pool, I realized it didn't have enough water in it to swim. The water only came up to about my knees. Then I woke up.
There are three very important things to do, if you want to hear from God in your dreams. First, if you are not already hearing from God at night, tell Him you want to. I assure you, He will be very pleased and will start giving you spiritual dreams from Him. Secondly, you must record them as soon as you can, before you forget it. Next, it is very important to ASK God what the dream means. It is from Him and He wants you to know something. It is so easy to just start guessing and maybe going down the wrong trail. Ask Him! And then start listening to your thoughts.
So, I asked the Holy Spirit to reveal to me the meaning of this dream. He quickly reminded me of the Living Water mentioned in both the Old and New Testaments. The interpretation was that I was trying to do a project without being filled with the Holy Spirit. I did have "some of the spirit" in me. But, I was also just going off on my own, like I am sometimes prone to doing. This ususally gives me less than the desired results.
Important question - how did I know I had the "correct" interpretation of the dream? After asking the Holy Spirit for the correct answer, I pondered several possibilities. When I got to the one about the water symbolizing the Holy Spirit, something deep in my spirit "leapt" and I knew it was right. I learned this from Mark Virkler, who has taught me many wonderful things over the last few years. He has books, DVDs and conferences on several topics, including Christian dream interpretation and "How to hear from God". His web site is http://www.cwgministries.org/.
I have seen this happen many times when I tried to help people understand their dreams. When you finally hit on the right answer, they will know it. If you are a Christian, you just have to try this and you will see what I mean. I wanted to give one other dream example, but this post is already getting long. So, I will save it for the next one, which I will post in the next 2-3 days. Until then,
Sweet dreams,
Melody
Job 33:14-16
The premise of this blog is that God can and will talk to us through our dreams - if we pay attention. How do we know if a dream is from God? First of all, we have to be able to remember some part of it. If all you remember is sketchy, mumbo-jumbo that fades within minutes of waking - then I believe it is safe to assume that was not a "God" dream. I believe that one reason God will communicate with us at night is because that is the only time we are not consumed with doing something else. He can actually get through to us then - if we allow Him.
We tend to be so busy during the day and evening hours. Many of us are addicted to noise and sound. We always have the TV, music, radio, computer or video games going. How are we supposed to hear from God with all that racket? I'm not just preaching to you, I was the worse offender for many years. That's another story. But, I finally learned to keep all of that to a minimum, except my praise and worship music and videos. When I did that, the spiritual atmosphere in my home and car totally changed. It's a decision I have to make every day. I can easily be pulled into watching TV, hour after hour, or mindlessly surfing the web for an entire evening.
Even harmless things like watching funny animal videos can be a distraction. Then, at some point, I find myself too tired to read my Bible or have any meaningful time with God. We all need some down time. That's not what I'm talking about. But, we also need to have some discipline in our lives to do those things that are most important and beneficial to us. Same thing with exercise....I know, you don't want to go there. Let's get back to dreams.
For a Christian, a dream is likely from God, when it is vivid and clear enough that you remember all, or most of it - with some details. We've all had dreams like that, but most people don't realize God is trying to tell them something. I believe that for most Christians, the dreams will be fairly simple and not very complex. I'm giving general rules here. There are always exceptions.
When is a dream not from God? Usually, when you wake up terrified, as with a nightmare. Again, there can be exceptions, but in general, those type dreams come from the enemy, who wants to torment you. I suffered from those dreams from early childhood until about 7 years ago, when I finally found out how to get rid of them. Almost every night, I had nightmares. Now, I have only had maybe 2 or 3 in the past 7 years! I will cover that in one of the upcoming posts.
So, what does all this crazy stuff mean that I dream about? Again, keeping the biblical perspective, I would tell you to always look for symbolism that God used in the Bible. That assumes, as a Christian you know at least a little about your Bible. Let me give you some common examples. Think of the different analogies that Jesus, Luke and Paul used in describing the Holy Spirit. Water, fire, wind and wine can all be symbolic of the Holy Spirit. For example, I recently had a simple dream in which I saw a swimming pool. I love to swim. So, I jumped right in and tried to swim. Once in the pool, I realized it didn't have enough water in it to swim. The water only came up to about my knees. Then I woke up.
There are three very important things to do, if you want to hear from God in your dreams. First, if you are not already hearing from God at night, tell Him you want to. I assure you, He will be very pleased and will start giving you spiritual dreams from Him. Secondly, you must record them as soon as you can, before you forget it. Next, it is very important to ASK God what the dream means. It is from Him and He wants you to know something. It is so easy to just start guessing and maybe going down the wrong trail. Ask Him! And then start listening to your thoughts.
So, I asked the Holy Spirit to reveal to me the meaning of this dream. He quickly reminded me of the Living Water mentioned in both the Old and New Testaments. The interpretation was that I was trying to do a project without being filled with the Holy Spirit. I did have "some of the spirit" in me. But, I was also just going off on my own, like I am sometimes prone to doing. This ususally gives me less than the desired results.
Important question - how did I know I had the "correct" interpretation of the dream? After asking the Holy Spirit for the correct answer, I pondered several possibilities. When I got to the one about the water symbolizing the Holy Spirit, something deep in my spirit "leapt" and I knew it was right. I learned this from Mark Virkler, who has taught me many wonderful things over the last few years. He has books, DVDs and conferences on several topics, including Christian dream interpretation and "How to hear from God". His web site is http://www.cwgministries.org/.
I have seen this happen many times when I tried to help people understand their dreams. When you finally hit on the right answer, they will know it. If you are a Christian, you just have to try this and you will see what I mean. I wanted to give one other dream example, but this post is already getting long. So, I will save it for the next one, which I will post in the next 2-3 days. Until then,
Sweet dreams,
Melody
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
An Encouraging Dream
"For God may speak in one way or in another, yet man does not perceive it. In a dream, in a vision of the night, while slumbering on their beds, then He opens the ears of men, and seals their instruction."
Job 33:14-16
Do you need encouraging? Would you like God, Himself, to give you an encouraging word? He would love to do that - in your dreams! If you haven't read the previous posts, please do so. It explains how to get started and put yourself in a position to hear from God.
In the last post, I shared a spiritually significant dream in which the Lord showed Himself to me with a very comforting word. This occurred in the early morning of 9/11/2001. The dream I share with you today is one of my favorites where He gave me a very encouraging word. I surely needed it at the time, and it continues to encourage me every time I think of it. I am so glad someone shared with me the importance of paying attention to dreams and looking for the Holy Spirit to speak through them. Here is what I dreamed....
I found myself in a large meeting - like at a convention. It was a "meet and greet" situation. Everyone was standing around talking and wearing name tags. They introduced themselves to the ones they didn't know. I realized I didn't have a name tag on. Then, a very short, little lady came up to me and shook my hand. She said, "Hello, my name is Barbara and I am a giant". I was thinking how odd that was. She was the third person, who was actually very small, that introduced themselves to me as a giant. I was much bigger than they were.
I turned and walked away from her, pondering this situation. I walked down a long hall and saw a large man walk up to me. He said, "You don't have a name tag. This one is yours." I took the name tag without looking at it, peeled off the back part, and slapped it up on my shoulder. It was then, that I looked down and saw what the name tag said - HELLO. My name is BLESSED.
Wow! I woke up so excited. I couldn't wait to tell my husband, Daron, my dream. I quickly recorded it in my journal. I didn't want to forget one word of it. Obviously, this one is simple to interpret. My first rule of Christian dream interpretation is to consider how you felt emotionally when you woke up from the dream. Were you happy, scared or confused? This makes a difference in the meaning. I will go into more detail about that in a later post. I woke up from this dream very happy and encouraged.
The first significant symbol in the dream was the little lady who introduced herself to me as a giant. Giants in a dream, symbolize circumstances that seem big and insurmountable to us - something difficult to deal with. Remember, also, that I had three "giants" that I met in the dream - meaning, at that time, there were three big problems in my life. Or at least, that is the way I was looking at them. It would seem God wanted me to change my perspective and realize that because His Spirit is in me - together we are bigger than ANY problem that will occur in my life. Greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world. 1 John 4:4
The other significant symbol in this dream was the name tag. It symbolizes our identity, what we call ourselves and what other people call us. God wanted to make sure I KNEW my name, my real identity in Christ - and it is BLESSED! When we are dealing with problems, especially big ones (my giants), it is easy to fall into a victim mentality. The longer we stay there, the bigger the problems seem and the more discouraged we get.
That's when I learned how important it is to magnify the Lord. This simply means to take a good look at Him up close. He is far bigger and greater than any problem we have. As my perspective changes, my mood improves, and peace and joy return.
I absolutely love this dream. I'm so glad I recorded it before the cares of this world and daily problems caused me to forget it. If you've never had any dreams like that, then tell the Lord you are ready to hear from Him, and ask Him to speak to you in the night. He will. It may not be every night. It's not for me. Sometimes, I seem to go a long time without a spiritual dream, but when they do come, I am so glad. It is always to help me in some way. God is so good!
Start paying attention to your dreams and recording them, even if you don't have a clue what they mean. More symbolism and help interpreting will follow in up-coming posts. Until then,
Sweet dreams,
Melody
Job 33:14-16
Do you need encouraging? Would you like God, Himself, to give you an encouraging word? He would love to do that - in your dreams! If you haven't read the previous posts, please do so. It explains how to get started and put yourself in a position to hear from God.
In the last post, I shared a spiritually significant dream in which the Lord showed Himself to me with a very comforting word. This occurred in the early morning of 9/11/2001. The dream I share with you today is one of my favorites where He gave me a very encouraging word. I surely needed it at the time, and it continues to encourage me every time I think of it. I am so glad someone shared with me the importance of paying attention to dreams and looking for the Holy Spirit to speak through them. Here is what I dreamed....
I found myself in a large meeting - like at a convention. It was a "meet and greet" situation. Everyone was standing around talking and wearing name tags. They introduced themselves to the ones they didn't know. I realized I didn't have a name tag on. Then, a very short, little lady came up to me and shook my hand. She said, "Hello, my name is Barbara and I am a giant". I was thinking how odd that was. She was the third person, who was actually very small, that introduced themselves to me as a giant. I was much bigger than they were.
I turned and walked away from her, pondering this situation. I walked down a long hall and saw a large man walk up to me. He said, "You don't have a name tag. This one is yours." I took the name tag without looking at it, peeled off the back part, and slapped it up on my shoulder. It was then, that I looked down and saw what the name tag said - HELLO. My name is BLESSED.
Wow! I woke up so excited. I couldn't wait to tell my husband, Daron, my dream. I quickly recorded it in my journal. I didn't want to forget one word of it. Obviously, this one is simple to interpret. My first rule of Christian dream interpretation is to consider how you felt emotionally when you woke up from the dream. Were you happy, scared or confused? This makes a difference in the meaning. I will go into more detail about that in a later post. I woke up from this dream very happy and encouraged.
The first significant symbol in the dream was the little lady who introduced herself to me as a giant. Giants in a dream, symbolize circumstances that seem big and insurmountable to us - something difficult to deal with. Remember, also, that I had three "giants" that I met in the dream - meaning, at that time, there were three big problems in my life. Or at least, that is the way I was looking at them. It would seem God wanted me to change my perspective and realize that because His Spirit is in me - together we are bigger than ANY problem that will occur in my life. Greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world. 1 John 4:4
The other significant symbol in this dream was the name tag. It symbolizes our identity, what we call ourselves and what other people call us. God wanted to make sure I KNEW my name, my real identity in Christ - and it is BLESSED! When we are dealing with problems, especially big ones (my giants), it is easy to fall into a victim mentality. The longer we stay there, the bigger the problems seem and the more discouraged we get.
That's when I learned how important it is to magnify the Lord. This simply means to take a good look at Him up close. He is far bigger and greater than any problem we have. As my perspective changes, my mood improves, and peace and joy return.
I absolutely love this dream. I'm so glad I recorded it before the cares of this world and daily problems caused me to forget it. If you've never had any dreams like that, then tell the Lord you are ready to hear from Him, and ask Him to speak to you in the night. He will. It may not be every night. It's not for me. Sometimes, I seem to go a long time without a spiritual dream, but when they do come, I am so glad. It is always to help me in some way. God is so good!
Start paying attention to your dreams and recording them, even if you don't have a clue what they mean. More symbolism and help interpreting will follow in up-coming posts. Until then,
Sweet dreams,
Melody
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Does God Speak to us in our dreams?
"For God may speak in one way or in another, yet man does not perceive it. In a dream, in a vision of the night, while slumbering on their beds, then He opens the ears of men, and seals their instruction."
Job 33:14-16
One reason for writing this blog is to help Christians consider that God can and still does speak to us in our dreams. For many, this is a new thought. But, I challenge you in this coming year of 2012, to pay attention to your dreams and record them. I believe that you, like me, will be amazed at what happens.
In this blog, I will give examples from my own life of spiritual dreams and what they meant to me. I have been recording my dreams for several years and have several journals full of them. If my house/motorhome caught fire, they would be one the first things I would grab to save. The dream I want to share first is one I consider to be my most significant spiritual dream. It occurred about 5:00 am 9/11/2001.
I dreamed that I was standing in my bedroom when my then teenage daughter Brittany came running into the room very excited. "HE'S IN THERE! HE'S IN THERE! HE'S REALLY IN THERE! Come see!"
I said, "Who? What? What are you talking about"
She said, "IT'S JESUS! HE'S IN MY ROOM. HE'S IN THERE. HE'S REALLY IN THERE. COME SEE".
Amazed at her words, I ran down the hall and opened her bedroom door. Much to my shock and surprise, there He stood. There was no question in my mind it was Him. The rest of the room looked like it was in black and white - and there He was in beautiful, bright, living color - shining! I was so excited I couldn't say anything, and much to my chagrin - I woke up.
My heart was racing and I could not believe what I saw in this dream. Never before had I experienced a dream like this one. I wondered what it could possibly mean. But all I could think about was a Hebrew phrase that kept running through my mind - Jehovah Shammah - translated the Lord is There or the Lord Himself is There.
I tried to go back to sleep, hoping to continue that dream. Yet, all I could think was "Jehovah Shammah, Jehovah Shammah, Jehovah Shammah" over and over again. I knew what this phrase meant from teaching a Bible study class at our church on the names of God. But, what was this vivid dream about and why was this phrase/name of God (found in Ezekiel 48:35) continually running through my head?
I tossed and turned, trying to return to sleep - to no avail. I knew the dream and this phrase had to be something very significant, but had no clue to its meaning at that moment. I finally got out of bed and prepared for my day with that phrase, Jehovah Shammah, continuing in my brain as if a little person was sitting on my shoulder whispering into my ear.
It was almost time to go to my Precept Bible Study class on Tuesday morning. I turned on the TV for a few minutes to look at the news before I left. As I turned it on NBC, the Today show was telling about a plane that had just crashed into one of the towers of the World Trade Center. As they were standing there, the second jet crashed into the other tower. The same tower that my family and I had been in on our last vacation. It was at that moment that everyone realized this was not an accident, but a terrorist attack.
I left to go to the Bible Study, but no one could keep their minds on the study because of what was happening. We dismissed early and went back home to see the lastest news. I got there in time to watch in horror as the towers began to fall. I was weeping thinking about all the lives that were being lost at that time and thinking about their families and knowing that all our lives were never going to be the same. My human mind could only think of the despair, devastation and loss of life. But my spirit kept saying, "Jehovah Shammah, Jehovah Shammah". And I knew God was there, in the midst of all of it, He was there.
Like many Americans, I remained glued to the TV for days to come and couldn't stop crying. I watched people coming up to the TV reporters with pictures of their lost ones, hoping to find them. It was so sad. But, Jehovah Shammah continued to comfort me and remind me that this tragedy did not catch God by surprise. He would bring good out of it and He is our Comfort in all things big and small. And, as His name says, He is with us at all times, regardless of what we are going through. Jehovah Shammah.
If you want to hear from God in your dreams, you need to tell Him. Turn your thoughts to Him and/or learn to "fix your eyes on Jesus" as you fall asleep. If you are not sure what I am talking about, stay tuned. I will go into more detail in following posts. I would also like to to hear from you about your dreams. I do not have a significant spiritual dream every night. They often come in spurts - 2 or 3 at a time and then I may go for a while without anything that mattered. But, oh the ones that do matter - I wouldn't trade them for anything.
If you don't have any spiritual dreams and you are a Christian, I believe that you can and will have them. Keep reading and follow the suggestions that will be given in this blog. Our God is a good God who loves to communicate with us - so much that His Son Jesus is called the Word - the Living Word - the Logos. That has not changed. Give it a try and give it time. You will hear from God and I would love to hear your experiences. I hope this encourages you. Until next time....
Sweet dreams,
Melody
Job 33:14-16
One reason for writing this blog is to help Christians consider that God can and still does speak to us in our dreams. For many, this is a new thought. But, I challenge you in this coming year of 2012, to pay attention to your dreams and record them. I believe that you, like me, will be amazed at what happens.
In this blog, I will give examples from my own life of spiritual dreams and what they meant to me. I have been recording my dreams for several years and have several journals full of them. If my house/motorhome caught fire, they would be one the first things I would grab to save. The dream I want to share first is one I consider to be my most significant spiritual dream. It occurred about 5:00 am 9/11/2001.
I dreamed that I was standing in my bedroom when my then teenage daughter Brittany came running into the room very excited. "HE'S IN THERE! HE'S IN THERE! HE'S REALLY IN THERE! Come see!"
I said, "Who? What? What are you talking about"
She said, "IT'S JESUS! HE'S IN MY ROOM. HE'S IN THERE. HE'S REALLY IN THERE. COME SEE".
Amazed at her words, I ran down the hall and opened her bedroom door. Much to my shock and surprise, there He stood. There was no question in my mind it was Him. The rest of the room looked like it was in black and white - and there He was in beautiful, bright, living color - shining! I was so excited I couldn't say anything, and much to my chagrin - I woke up.
My heart was racing and I could not believe what I saw in this dream. Never before had I experienced a dream like this one. I wondered what it could possibly mean. But all I could think about was a Hebrew phrase that kept running through my mind - Jehovah Shammah - translated the Lord is There or the Lord Himself is There.
I tried to go back to sleep, hoping to continue that dream. Yet, all I could think was "Jehovah Shammah, Jehovah Shammah, Jehovah Shammah" over and over again. I knew what this phrase meant from teaching a Bible study class at our church on the names of God. But, what was this vivid dream about and why was this phrase/name of God (found in Ezekiel 48:35) continually running through my head?
I tossed and turned, trying to return to sleep - to no avail. I knew the dream and this phrase had to be something very significant, but had no clue to its meaning at that moment. I finally got out of bed and prepared for my day with that phrase, Jehovah Shammah, continuing in my brain as if a little person was sitting on my shoulder whispering into my ear.
It was almost time to go to my Precept Bible Study class on Tuesday morning. I turned on the TV for a few minutes to look at the news before I left. As I turned it on NBC, the Today show was telling about a plane that had just crashed into one of the towers of the World Trade Center. As they were standing there, the second jet crashed into the other tower. The same tower that my family and I had been in on our last vacation. It was at that moment that everyone realized this was not an accident, but a terrorist attack.
I left to go to the Bible Study, but no one could keep their minds on the study because of what was happening. We dismissed early and went back home to see the lastest news. I got there in time to watch in horror as the towers began to fall. I was weeping thinking about all the lives that were being lost at that time and thinking about their families and knowing that all our lives were never going to be the same. My human mind could only think of the despair, devastation and loss of life. But my spirit kept saying, "Jehovah Shammah, Jehovah Shammah". And I knew God was there, in the midst of all of it, He was there.
Like many Americans, I remained glued to the TV for days to come and couldn't stop crying. I watched people coming up to the TV reporters with pictures of their lost ones, hoping to find them. It was so sad. But, Jehovah Shammah continued to comfort me and remind me that this tragedy did not catch God by surprise. He would bring good out of it and He is our Comfort in all things big and small. And, as His name says, He is with us at all times, regardless of what we are going through. Jehovah Shammah.
If you want to hear from God in your dreams, you need to tell Him. Turn your thoughts to Him and/or learn to "fix your eyes on Jesus" as you fall asleep. If you are not sure what I am talking about, stay tuned. I will go into more detail in following posts. I would also like to to hear from you about your dreams. I do not have a significant spiritual dream every night. They often come in spurts - 2 or 3 at a time and then I may go for a while without anything that mattered. But, oh the ones that do matter - I wouldn't trade them for anything.
If you don't have any spiritual dreams and you are a Christian, I believe that you can and will have them. Keep reading and follow the suggestions that will be given in this blog. Our God is a good God who loves to communicate with us - so much that His Son Jesus is called the Word - the Living Word - the Logos. That has not changed. Give it a try and give it time. You will hear from God and I would love to hear your experiences. I hope this encourages you. Until next time....
Sweet dreams,
Melody
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Getting Started
Dream interpretation for Christian believers is different than for others. We use the Bible as our guide and the Holy Spirit as our inspiration. As a disciple of Jesus Christ, I will be discussing dream interpretation from that perspective. Interestingly, the Bible is full of dreams and visions where God communicated with man. In fact, about 2/3 of the Bible resulted from God speaking to man through dreams and/or visions. Some people think that God doesn't still speak to us that way. My belief and experience is that God is still very active in communicating with us, if we will just pay attention and listen.
I love talking to people about their dreams. Some are like my husband. He said he never dreamed. But now, he does and pays attention to them. He has had some very significant spiritual dreams just like I have. So what changed? We'll get to that soon.
Most people say their dreams are crazy and don't make any sense. Or maybe they know they dreamed something, but it starts to fade - sometimes just minutes after awakening. Some have vivid dreams they remember for a long time - even if it doesn't make any sense. Others may have repetitive dreams and like me, terrifying dreams. So, what does it all mean and is God really trying to tell us something through our dreams?
Let's start with some scientific facts about dreams and dreaming. First of all, everyone does dream. It appears to be a physical and emotional necessity for our health. Our sleep and dreams occur in cycles at night. Every 90-minute cycle of sleep begins with alpha level. This is where the rapid eye movements occur and when we dream. This is followed by a deeper level of sleep called theta and then the deepest level called delta. The interesting thing is that with each 90 minute cycle we get more alpha level sleep and therefore more dreams. With the first 90 minute cycle of the night, you only get about a 5 minute alpha phase. But the next phase will double and the following phase will double, etc. So, if you can get a full 8 eight hours of sleep, your last alpha (dreaming) phase will be about 1 hour long. With all the alpha phases combined, a person should get 1-2 hours of alpha level dream phase sleep a night.
So, why do some people remember dreams and some don't. There may be several reasons, but one thing in particular, is necessary. You have to wake up within about 5 minutes of completing the alpha phase. Otherwise, you will not be able to recall it. However, that is when most people will naturally wake up - if they are not using an alarm clock.
What can you do to remember more of your dreams? First, decide that you want to and tell yourself (preferably out loud) that you will remember your dreams. Ideally, do this right before you go to sleep. Your body and brain will actually listen to you and co-operate. If it doesn't happen right away. give it time. It will happen. That's how it worked for my husband. Once he began to make an effort to remember his dreams, he did. It's also helps to get a good night's sleep. Insomnia can get in the way of dreaming and sleeping. At some point, I will address this. There are some simple things that will help most people get a much better night's sleep.
Secondly, it is very important to record your dreams - if you want to be able to benefit from them. We have all had the experience of having a vivid dream, waking up and shortly thereafter, not be able to re-call it. As soon as you can, after awakening, write down what you remember. Having a notebook or journal and pen near the bed is a good idea. Write down every little detail you can remember - even if it doesn't make any sense. You can always analyze it at a later date - if it is recorded. Once you learn how to understand your dreams, you will be amazed at what they tell you, and more importantly, what God is telling you through your dreams. So, start recording and keep reading. Analysis and interpretation will be addressed soon. Until then,
Sweet Dreams,
Melody
I love talking to people about their dreams. Some are like my husband. He said he never dreamed. But now, he does and pays attention to them. He has had some very significant spiritual dreams just like I have. So what changed? We'll get to that soon.
Most people say their dreams are crazy and don't make any sense. Or maybe they know they dreamed something, but it starts to fade - sometimes just minutes after awakening. Some have vivid dreams they remember for a long time - even if it doesn't make any sense. Others may have repetitive dreams and like me, terrifying dreams. So, what does it all mean and is God really trying to tell us something through our dreams?
Let's start with some scientific facts about dreams and dreaming. First of all, everyone does dream. It appears to be a physical and emotional necessity for our health. Our sleep and dreams occur in cycles at night. Every 90-minute cycle of sleep begins with alpha level. This is where the rapid eye movements occur and when we dream. This is followed by a deeper level of sleep called theta and then the deepest level called delta. The interesting thing is that with each 90 minute cycle we get more alpha level sleep and therefore more dreams. With the first 90 minute cycle of the night, you only get about a 5 minute alpha phase. But the next phase will double and the following phase will double, etc. So, if you can get a full 8 eight hours of sleep, your last alpha (dreaming) phase will be about 1 hour long. With all the alpha phases combined, a person should get 1-2 hours of alpha level dream phase sleep a night.
So, why do some people remember dreams and some don't. There may be several reasons, but one thing in particular, is necessary. You have to wake up within about 5 minutes of completing the alpha phase. Otherwise, you will not be able to recall it. However, that is when most people will naturally wake up - if they are not using an alarm clock.
What can you do to remember more of your dreams? First, decide that you want to and tell yourself (preferably out loud) that you will remember your dreams. Ideally, do this right before you go to sleep. Your body and brain will actually listen to you and co-operate. If it doesn't happen right away. give it time. It will happen. That's how it worked for my husband. Once he began to make an effort to remember his dreams, he did. It's also helps to get a good night's sleep. Insomnia can get in the way of dreaming and sleeping. At some point, I will address this. There are some simple things that will help most people get a much better night's sleep.
Secondly, it is very important to record your dreams - if you want to be able to benefit from them. We have all had the experience of having a vivid dream, waking up and shortly thereafter, not be able to re-call it. As soon as you can, after awakening, write down what you remember. Having a notebook or journal and pen near the bed is a good idea. Write down every little detail you can remember - even if it doesn't make any sense. You can always analyze it at a later date - if it is recorded. Once you learn how to understand your dreams, you will be amazed at what they tell you, and more importantly, what God is telling you through your dreams. So, start recording and keep reading. Analysis and interpretation will be addressed soon. Until then,
Sweet Dreams,
Melody
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Beginning
I've always been fascinated with dreams. I've had crazy nonsense dreams, horrible nightmares, funny dreams and a few just really good dreams. I always wondered if they meant anything - and if so, what?
Several years ago I began to get some good teaching about what dreams really are and what they mean. The first thing that happened was that I finally quit having a terrible nightmare that had plagued me for years. What a relief! I also begin to understand that God can and still does speak to us in our dreams - if we let Him. Just like in the Bible. Imagine that!
This was not something taught in the traditional church that I grew up in. Nevertheless, I knew it was a real and valid experience. As I began to really pay attention to my dreams, record them and ask God for understanding, I was amazed at the results and the good effect it had on my life. I will be sharing a lot of these dreams and their meanings in this blog.
I continued to research, read and learn everything I could about Christian dream interpretation and how God speaks to us in our dreams. I've sat under some wonderful teachers that have greatly impacted my life. Recently, God made it very plain to me - in a dream with a confirmation - that it is time for me to share this knowledge and use it to help others. This blog is the first step in doing that.
I will explain the steps in understanding your dreams, how to know which ones mean something and which ones are "Pizza dreams". I plan to add a dream dictionary for looking up particular symbols. Most importantly of all, I will show you how to know when God is speaking to you and how to know what it means.
If you want me to interpret a dream for you, let me know. Often, I know immediately what something means. Other times, I need to pray about it and then tell you what I think I am hearing. I will also tell you how to know if someone else is interpreting your dream correctly.
I think it is time for God's people to learn how to hear His voice. More than ever, today we need this. Dreams are just one way God can communicate with us. I look forward to sharing with you and hearing your comments back to me.
Sweet Dreams,
Melody
Several years ago I began to get some good teaching about what dreams really are and what they mean. The first thing that happened was that I finally quit having a terrible nightmare that had plagued me for years. What a relief! I also begin to understand that God can and still does speak to us in our dreams - if we let Him. Just like in the Bible. Imagine that!
This was not something taught in the traditional church that I grew up in. Nevertheless, I knew it was a real and valid experience. As I began to really pay attention to my dreams, record them and ask God for understanding, I was amazed at the results and the good effect it had on my life. I will be sharing a lot of these dreams and their meanings in this blog.
I continued to research, read and learn everything I could about Christian dream interpretation and how God speaks to us in our dreams. I've sat under some wonderful teachers that have greatly impacted my life. Recently, God made it very plain to me - in a dream with a confirmation - that it is time for me to share this knowledge and use it to help others. This blog is the first step in doing that.
I will explain the steps in understanding your dreams, how to know which ones mean something and which ones are "Pizza dreams". I plan to add a dream dictionary for looking up particular symbols. Most importantly of all, I will show you how to know when God is speaking to you and how to know what it means.
If you want me to interpret a dream for you, let me know. Often, I know immediately what something means. Other times, I need to pray about it and then tell you what I think I am hearing. I will also tell you how to know if someone else is interpreting your dream correctly.
I think it is time for God's people to learn how to hear His voice. More than ever, today we need this. Dreams are just one way God can communicate with us. I look forward to sharing with you and hearing your comments back to me.
Sweet Dreams,
Melody
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