Dreams

“Jacob dreamed that there was a ladder resting on the earth and reaching up into heaven, and he saw angels of God going up and coming down the ladder.”    Genesis 28:13

A few weeks ago, I had a vivid dream about my sister-in-law, Alice who died this summer.  In the dream, I was at a camp and had to go to the bathroom.  I went into a cabin with the number “136” on it, and my brother-in-law, Don and his wife, Alice were in the cabin taking a nap.  I could see the maroon colored bedspread on the bed which was in their house when I had visited.  I saw Alice’s beautiful silver hair and she spoke in her strong voice, “Oh, come on in, that’s fine.  You are welcome here.”  Then I woke up.  I called Don the next day and shared my dream.  I have pondered on the meaning of the dream.  First of all, the cabin number is the same as their house number.  Alice’s voice was strong and she welcomed me like she always did into her home.  I never had the opportunity to say good-bye to Alice nor have we had the privilege of celebrating her life because of the pandemic.  God blessed me with the dream to be assured Alice is fine now and has a wonderful service in Heaven of welcoming people.  The dream gave me a closure to my earthly relationship with Alice.

I believe God speaks to us sometimes in our dreams like God did to Jacob in the book of Genesis.  I have had many dreams and visions with people who have died that have given me the needed closure when I was unable to say good-bye.  One morning after a dear friend died and I was unable to be with him or say good-bye, I saw him for a moment leaning against a tree in my back yard.  He nodded and then was gone.  It was my good-bye and assurance our relationship was healed, and he was fine.  Sometimes we long for a dream with our loved one and it never comes.  We desire for a moment their presence and to feel their touch and presence around us.  I have had moments where I felt the presence of my mom and dad and my husband, Dave.  It makes me smile.  I give thanks to God for those sacred moments.

Not all dreams have specific meaning or reveal the presence of a loved one or God.  Some dreams are just the mixture of thoughts or things we have heard or seen.  They have no meaning and are just a release of the random and strange thoughts that go through our minds each day.  But some dreams reveal the connection of Heaven and earth.  Just like Jacob’s dream of the ladder revealing the connection of Heaven and earth.

I believe God speaks to us in dreams because it is sometimes the only time when we are quiet or allow our world to slow down and be still before God.  In our grief, the quiet is intense with emotion and we feel the loneliness and aloneness that we try to avoid.  Other times, we long for the quiet moments when we can reflect, remember and hold onto the moments with our loved one.  In that moment between sleep and awake, it is where I have dreamed and felt the presence of my loved one.  It is when reality has not awaken and I feel my loved one with me.  I believe those are the moments Heaven touches earth and God allows us to remember and have the assurance our loved one is with God.   And because they are with God and God is with us, our loved one is with us in spirit and in memory.