Night Vision

"The name of the Lord is a strong tower;the righteous run to it and are safe." Proverbs 18:10


I'm going to diverge from writing about a quote this week. This past weekend our family went to visit my parents in Arkansas where we hiked, had picnics and enjoyed God's beautiful creation. The first night we stayed, the Lord interrupted my sleep with three dreams I will never forget and believe I'm supposed to share. It was more like a vision - as intense as real life. You may want to take a deep breath, sit down and ponder this yourself. Here we go...

I all started by me taking out a piece of meat from the kitchen. It was wrapped in white butcher paper and not even cold. I took it back into one of the kid's bedroom, which in my dream was my room. Now, in this dream, everything about my house remained intact, except that my bedroom was switched with Mackenzie's. It was night and I was home alone. I sat the wrapped meat on the bed and immediately the house was illuminated as with a black light. Things normally light turned dark and the dark world came alive. An image, resembling the "dark lord" from "The Lord of the Rings" movie appeared in the corner of the room, dressed in black. He (it) had no defined features - only holes that seemed to go on into eternity filled his frame. Out of him came shrieks and fire. This person personified evil and anything evil in the room became seen. I immediately ran out of the room, searching the living room for any other evidences of this evil. I saw none- although darkness covered the house. I crept back into the room and faced the evil once again, my heart pounding. When I hear an inner voice say, "Just say the name of Jesus." I raise my hands, close my eyes and whisper "Jesus". To which a white light, whiter than the hottest fire, begins to consume the Evil One in the corner and completely quenchless any other evidence of darkness. Now the room has turned to a brightness like the Morning Star! I look on the bed, and I'm still hold this meat. I began to cut it into pieces. I hear a voice say to me, "You have nothing to be afraid of. I have overcome it all. You are safe by the power of my name."

Here's where I wake up. Adam's still beside me at my parent's house. I almost wake him up and tell him the story. But I don't, and I drift back to sleep and into another dream -


This time I'm working at a gas station. As a carry-over from the previous dream, I'm still carrying the butcher paper wrapped meat, that doesn't require refrigeration. But now, I have been given a heavenly vision to see whether people are followers of the wicked prince or the Lamb of God. I see seals on their forehead or flames like the one in the corner of my room. Anyway, all the people I worked with were evil, wicked people. Their laughs rang out in my ear and I constantly tried to get away from their lure. But I realized, they weren't trying to get me - they were trying to steal my meat! I constantly had to "shoo" them away from where I kept my prized possession. A fellow church friend pulled into the parking lot for her daughter to sell some tickets for a fund raiser. I walked out into the parking lot to visit with her. After a minute, I felt this tug on my heart telling to go back inside. Upon entering, I find all my co-workers huddled around my meat - "NO!" I shout as I'm breaking through their circle. I grab my meat and run.

The third and last dream is simple. I'm sitting at a small, two person table in a restaurant sharing this whole experience with a close friend of mine. I remember trying to carefully re-tell the events as they happened, but I just keep crying. I mean, the tears will not stop. Then, when I've come to the end, the person I'm sharing it with begins to cry in great sobs.


So, what is my conclusion to the matter? Well, after the shock of what I just went through, and also feeling honored to have the Lord speak to me in such a way, I began to pray for clarity as to what it all meant. Dream #1, I believe to be a picture of what Jesus conquered on the cross. He overcame the Evil One and His light consumes the darkness, so we have nothing to fear! As to the meat, I believe it represents my children specifically and can include our whole family.

In the second dream, the gas station and those who worked with me represent the world and those who choose to turn away from Jesus' words and salvation message. I also see "good" things like church ministry, activities and other commitments pulling us away from what God has entrusted to me and us..."the meat". It was like in the first dream God gave me this precious package saying, "protect this" and in the second one, I see the world grasping at every straw to pull me away from it or out right steal it. My next thought was, how do I protect this meat (my children)? To which I concluded, it's only by the power of His name. That's the only way we're safe! Proverbs 18:10  says "The name of the Lord is a strong tower, the righteous run to it and are safe." So we call on Jesus to protect us, but also of utmost importance, is teaching God's Word to our children. That's the only other way to keep them safe in this world who hates them and wants to steal them away. We must spend the time, protect our schedules and be diligent at teaching our children the Word of God!

Finally, the third dream I believe told me to share this story anytime I can. God is always calling us to himself. I pray we are listening.