The night after my dream about Christ's return I had another which, I believe, was part two of that message. This one, you'll be glad to know, was significantly shorter. While the details of this dream are few, the thoughts and feelings that surfaced through prayer and reflection spoke volumes.
My son was sick. He had developed Alzheimer's and it was progressing quickly-I noticed minute by minute changes in him. As my mother's heart broke, I found myself stressing about all that he needed to learn and accomplish before he could pass onto the next life. How could we possibly fit it all in before his time here ended?
This dream spoke two messages to me. The first is one is more personal, a parents viewpoint. We are responsible for raising our children to know and love God. We don't know how much time we will have to do this and so we must make every day count.
The second message in this dream is the one that relates to that of Christ's return. My son is only three years old. Alzheimer's would be extremely premature and unexpected. This said to me that we have a short amount of time on this earth, and we don't know when that time is up. We must labour daily to be ready for God to take us home. We are all working toward a greater life, one worth while, an amazing one filled with joy, love, peace and rest. However, this life is not unimportant either. Our earthly life does affect the next one, not to mention those whose lives are touched by ours. There is a need to accomplish our God given tasks and prepare our hearts for the day Christ returns.
This is a reminder that I frequently need-usually daily, if not hourly. It's so easy to allow our focus to shift from eternity to the here and now. I pray, for you as well as myself, that God will help maintain our focus on his kingdom more than on this earthly life. That we may seek and find the Lord's calling for our lives, as well as the strength and wisdom to answer it.
June 26, 2009
June 10, 2009
2:30 am Revelation
While I am still trying to play catch up on some messages I've received, I feel compelled to return to the present for a bit.
God has been working in my heart for some time on the issue of jealousy. I wouldn't classify myself as a jealous person in general, but every once in a while that emotion would arise in my heart. Even though I knew it was wrong I couldn't stop it from happening. Head knowledge doesn't always transfer to the heart. After all, how do you reason away emotions? Recently that feeling surfaced again, and made me feel so ugly. God finds our beauty in our hearts, and mine was not looking so good at that moment. In despair, I did what I should have done long ago. I put it in His hands. I prayed and told Him that I am not capable of changing how I react emotionally. While I can outwardly react in the correct manner, I needed Him to keep that jealousy from showing it's ugly face at all. Well, He certainly came through.
The same message that has helped me to be bold enough to share this blog with the world is the same one that caused my latest revelation. As it has been brought to my attention a few times now, God bestows giftings upon us. They, however, are not for us alone. While we may benefit from them, we are called to share them with others, in order to build them up, the outcome of which becomes another gift to us. This mentality is what convinced me that it would be selfish to keep the gifts I've received for myself. They are not mine to keep.
The other night, at 2:30 in the morning, both of my children woke up at the same time. I managed to get them to sleep easily again and crawled back into bed. I closed my eyes and all of a sudden, it hit me like running into a brick wall! Those occaional things that stir up jealousy in me, those giftings I often envy, they ARE mine! God has gifted others with these things so that I may benefit from them, so that I may be nurtured, so that I may see Him in others. All along I've been a fool. Instead of accepting these gifts from God, I have been jealous of the very things He's given to me!
I had expected that one day I would just notice I was no longer jealous, and would be able to give God credit, but He did more than that. He changed my perspective so that I have no more need for jealousy and, at the same time, reminded me of His love for me.
This is probably one of the only times I can say I'm grateful my children woke me up from a blissful sleep! It was worth it to be up for the next half hour or so just marveling at the discovery. I don't know for how long He had been preparing my heart to hear this word, or how loud He had to yell, but I am glad He is a patient and loving God that keeps trying!
This may not be a new discovery to you, but perhaps you will find another message in this revelation. Maybe it's a reminder to use your giftings and share your God moments with others, so that you may be an encouragement. Maybe it will help you to be more bold as well, knowing that you may be holding onto some one else's gift. I can guarantee you, the reward for sharing what God has done for you, or has given you, is like opening an even larger present.
God has been working in my heart for some time on the issue of jealousy. I wouldn't classify myself as a jealous person in general, but every once in a while that emotion would arise in my heart. Even though I knew it was wrong I couldn't stop it from happening. Head knowledge doesn't always transfer to the heart. After all, how do you reason away emotions? Recently that feeling surfaced again, and made me feel so ugly. God finds our beauty in our hearts, and mine was not looking so good at that moment. In despair, I did what I should have done long ago. I put it in His hands. I prayed and told Him that I am not capable of changing how I react emotionally. While I can outwardly react in the correct manner, I needed Him to keep that jealousy from showing it's ugly face at all. Well, He certainly came through.
The same message that has helped me to be bold enough to share this blog with the world is the same one that caused my latest revelation. As it has been brought to my attention a few times now, God bestows giftings upon us. They, however, are not for us alone. While we may benefit from them, we are called to share them with others, in order to build them up, the outcome of which becomes another gift to us. This mentality is what convinced me that it would be selfish to keep the gifts I've received for myself. They are not mine to keep.
The other night, at 2:30 in the morning, both of my children woke up at the same time. I managed to get them to sleep easily again and crawled back into bed. I closed my eyes and all of a sudden, it hit me like running into a brick wall! Those occaional things that stir up jealousy in me, those giftings I often envy, they ARE mine! God has gifted others with these things so that I may benefit from them, so that I may be nurtured, so that I may see Him in others. All along I've been a fool. Instead of accepting these gifts from God, I have been jealous of the very things He's given to me!
I had expected that one day I would just notice I was no longer jealous, and would be able to give God credit, but He did more than that. He changed my perspective so that I have no more need for jealousy and, at the same time, reminded me of His love for me.
This is probably one of the only times I can say I'm grateful my children woke me up from a blissful sleep! It was worth it to be up for the next half hour or so just marveling at the discovery. I don't know for how long He had been preparing my heart to hear this word, or how loud He had to yell, but I am glad He is a patient and loving God that keeps trying!
This may not be a new discovery to you, but perhaps you will find another message in this revelation. Maybe it's a reminder to use your giftings and share your God moments with others, so that you may be an encouragement. Maybe it will help you to be more bold as well, knowing that you may be holding onto some one else's gift. I can guarantee you, the reward for sharing what God has done for you, or has given you, is like opening an even larger present.
June 7, 2009
A Glimpse Into The Heart Of Jesus
While this entry is not about a dream or a vision, I had to share all the same. Today I believe that I was blessed to catch a glimpse into Jesus' heart and see how much he loves each of us.
During our church service, my dear friend was brave enough to share some of her life with us. I had heard her story before, and certain parts of it a few times, so it was nothing new to me. That did not negate it's value, however, or how proud I was of her. And it didn't stop the Holy Spirit from revealing Himself to me. As my friend spoke of a hard time she had gone through I was suddenly struck by this overwhelming sadness. Tears started to fall. I can't even explain how deep the emotions were. I found myself actually suppressing what I knew was about to become a flood. The feeling was indescribable. It was like one of those movie scenes where some one finds out a loved one has died and they just break down into that raw emotion. I sat and wondered, "where did THAT come from?" Then I heard a gentle answer, "that is how much I love you."
I have often prayed and asked Jesus how he feels about certain situations in people's lives. I get a picture of Him weeping over them, but I have always seen His reaction as more docile. I was viewing His emotions on an earthly level. I think He was showing me that even His feelings for us are bigger than we can imagine. He loves my friend so much that he didn't just weep over her, His heart cried out in deep anguish. Christ obviously loved us a lot to sacrifice His life so brutally for us, but this put His love into a whole new perspective for me. Just think about how deep that love is for each of us.
While my experience today was one of sorrow filled tears, it was a joy filled one as well. I got to see how much Jesus loves each of us, what our sorrows mean to Him, and I got to see my friend overcome some trials in her life-thanks to that loving Saviour. I have to admit that, even as I write this, I feel a little crazy, and fear of publishing this is sneaking in But how can I not share how our Lord and Friend feels for us? How can I not pass that along? I pray that you too might get a chance to experience or understand this deep and perfect love in a new way, and with new understanding-whether through this note or some other way He chooses to speak to you. I also pray that you might be more brave and bold than I was and not stifle the Holy Spirit when He comes to you. I'm sure I will get another chance again, but imagine what more I could have experienced.
During our church service, my dear friend was brave enough to share some of her life with us. I had heard her story before, and certain parts of it a few times, so it was nothing new to me. That did not negate it's value, however, or how proud I was of her. And it didn't stop the Holy Spirit from revealing Himself to me. As my friend spoke of a hard time she had gone through I was suddenly struck by this overwhelming sadness. Tears started to fall. I can't even explain how deep the emotions were. I found myself actually suppressing what I knew was about to become a flood. The feeling was indescribable. It was like one of those movie scenes where some one finds out a loved one has died and they just break down into that raw emotion. I sat and wondered, "where did THAT come from?" Then I heard a gentle answer, "that is how much I love you."
I have often prayed and asked Jesus how he feels about certain situations in people's lives. I get a picture of Him weeping over them, but I have always seen His reaction as more docile. I was viewing His emotions on an earthly level. I think He was showing me that even His feelings for us are bigger than we can imagine. He loves my friend so much that he didn't just weep over her, His heart cried out in deep anguish. Christ obviously loved us a lot to sacrifice His life so brutally for us, but this put His love into a whole new perspective for me. Just think about how deep that love is for each of us.
While my experience today was one of sorrow filled tears, it was a joy filled one as well. I got to see how much Jesus loves each of us, what our sorrows mean to Him, and I got to see my friend overcome some trials in her life-thanks to that loving Saviour. I have to admit that, even as I write this, I feel a little crazy, and fear of publishing this is sneaking in But how can I not share how our Lord and Friend feels for us? How can I not pass that along? I pray that you too might get a chance to experience or understand this deep and perfect love in a new way, and with new understanding-whether through this note or some other way He chooses to speak to you. I also pray that you might be more brave and bold than I was and not stifle the Holy Spirit when He comes to you. I'm sure I will get another chance again, but imagine what more I could have experienced.
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