Last night was like many nights, I’m running down the locker filled hallway of my old high school. As I try to slide into class late I realize I had forgotten class for the entire semester. Why didn’t I withdraw? Wait, What?! Why am I thinking about withdrawing from a high school class? That’s right, this is a college course (now) and I’m now sitting in a college class. As my mind is racing trying to figure out how I forgot such an important class for the entire semester I realize I need to go to the bathroom. As I look for the bathroom I discover that the bathrooms are all very disgusting. The bathroom looks a lot like a classroom, except the desks are toilets and while it doesn’t smell bad it’s covered in brown mud. None of the toilets are private except the ones that are currently occupied. I figure I can still go to the most private toilet in the corner. I’m getting ready to go and acquaintances from my life walk up as I’m trying to go. Now that wall that I hoping to shield me at least on two sides is now a half wall. Why would you design an open bathroom? Where am I?
Have you ever had a dream like that?
In my case, I might have simply forgotten to do something that was more important than I realized and at the same time had the need to go to the bathroom. However, what are we supposed to do with these dreams that very clear yet tell us nothing? Does God still talk to us in our dreams? If so what was God saying to you in that crazy dream?
Whether it was Joseph’s dream that he’d eventually be in a position of power or Daniel’s interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dreams the stories of these dreams have been taught in Sunday school. One that often gets missed is Zechariah the prophet. He had seemingly bizarre images about animal horns, oil-producing trees and angelic women flying around with baskets. If you want the exegesis on these scriptures you can look them up they are fascinating, but here are some practical things you can do to discover the meanings of your dreams.
Understand The Meanings Of Your Dreams
Understand that your dreams are a result of a few things. First, brain science would tell us that our brains reorganize things at night. Our dreams are often a product of processing thoughts, events and feelings. This is why the bathroom is disgusting and open and yet you still need to go. Your brain is trying to make sense of your physical need to go and the unconscious fear of going while you’re asleep. This is a simplistic view of course.
The other side of this is that there is another “person” inside you as well. Not only are you processing conscious and unconscious thought, but you’re dealing with what your spirit sees as well. The Bible tells us that we are a spirt that has a soul that lives in a body. This spirit has senses as well. In our dreams, we’ll often receive information that the spirit sees. To me, this explains deja vu better than any other explanation I’ve heard.
There are other times when God speaks to you in a dream as previously mentioned. I think it’s very important that although I think dreams can be important and very interesting, they are never more important than the dream Giver. This is why whether you have a dream that was a result of a pizza and a poor movie choice or a direct revelation from God you should go directly to the Source and ask Him what the dream was about. Keep a journal and write out your dream and what he says to you. If you have trouble hearing from God, check out my blog post on that topic.
What are some of your dreams? What other interpretations have you learned about? Let’s discuss!
