Dreams are fascinating. Sometimes the fascination disappears, though, and they are downright scary! Night terrors torment more people than would readily admit it. Some dreams are completely ridiculous and hilarious. They can be vibrantly colorful, or black and white. Other dreams are prophetic and very significant regarding details in our life. From a medical standpoint, it is said that our dreams are the culmination of the many thoughts and activities we’ve had all day long—bits and pieces of data going into the night processing of a giant computer (the brain). Perhaps that is so, but dreams have been a method of communication between God and man for a very long time…
But God speaks again and again, though people do not recognize it. He speaks in dreams, in visions of the night when deep sleep falls on people as they lie in bed. He whispers in their ear… (Job 33:14-16 NLT). The Lord spoke to King Solomon in a dream, as recorded in 1 Kings 3:5-15 (NLT). Notice how long they conversed in the dream:
That night the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream, and God said, "What do you want? Ask, and I will give it to you!"
Solomon replied, "You were wonderfully kind to my father, David, because he was honest and true and faithful to you. And you have continued this great kindness to him today by giving him a son to succeed him. O LORD my God, now you have made me king instead of my father, David, but I am like a little child who doesn't know his way around. And here I am among your own chosen people, a nation so great they are too numerous to count! Give me an understanding mind so that I can govern your people well and know the difference between right and wrong. For who by himself is able to govern this great nation of yours?"
The Lord was pleased with Solomon's reply and was glad that he had asked for wisdom. So God replied, "Because you have asked for wisdom in governing my people and have not asked for a long life or riches for yourself or the death of your enemies--I will give you what you asked for! I will give you a wise and understanding mind such as no one else has ever had or ever will have! And I will also give you what you did not ask for — riches and honor! No other king in all the world will be compared to you for the rest of your life! And if you follow me and obey my commands as your father, David, did, I will give you a long life."
Then Solomon woke up and realized it had been a dream.
Some dream, eh? It certainly wasn’t the common falling-into-a-bottomless-abyss dream. Nor was it a toilet dream, which, by the way, is often indicative that the Lord is “flushing” something negative from your life—or at least He wants to. It wasn’t even a ridiculously impossible setting, like Solomon soaring around the universe on Barney. It was a fascinating conversation between him and his Maker, and he took note of it. Then Solomon woke up and realized it had been a dream.
Do you take note of your dreams? Usually, we don’t pay too much attention to them, but we should! God still speaks to us in dreams--after all, He has our undivided attention for six to eight hours every night, so why wouldn’t He redeem the time to talk to us? He can encourage us, give us direction, show us things to come, and comfort us, just as He did Solomon, Jacob, Abraham, Joseph, and others.
Pay attention to your dreams! The Lord will help you remember dreams that He has authored. A dream journal beside your bed is a helpful tool. After recording a dream, pray and ask the Lord for understanding and insight as to its meaning. Know that the devil understands how vulnerable we are as we sleep, so he tries, too, to invade our dreams and torment us with nightmares. As Christians, we have authority to quickly rebuke and reject those troubling dreams.
So, go ahead…relax, drift off to sleep, and dream a little dream. God could speak to you tonight!
© 2020, Chris Werre