Can God give us prophetic dreams?
Here's a link that can launch a good scripture study of dreams.
Search for 'dream' - NAS - Study Desk
The airplane vision ... very powerful. It has some similarities to these:
Mt 2:12
And having been warned by God in a dream not to return to Herod, the magi left for their own country by another way.
Mt 2:13
An angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Get up! Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is going to search for the Child to destroy Him.
That one dream protected Jesus through his toddler years, until Herod was no longer a threat.
God often gives unusual information for prayer. It is not necessarily information that needs to be broadcast, but treated with the knowledge that some people will suffer, and prayer can help lighten the suffering. Or avert the event.
I had a quick thought about someone out of the blue once, and found out later he'd committed suicide that day. It was a good lesson in listening to what God brings across our paths.
In the case of the airplane vision, prayer probably went into the -yipes!- reaction. The viewer would have learned to trust a vision enough to pray more into the next one.
It can be seen as training process, where the first lesson did not carry a lot of personal responsibility. Entrusted with another, do we respond in a scriptural and productive manner?
Joseph and Daniel seemed to be discreet and proactive with their interpretations. They did not shout from the top of the castle, "Hey, we heard from God!" Joseph used the dream information to formulate a plan for Egypt to survive the drought.
Look at all the stories from 9-11, where people suspected something ahead of time, and were able to be out of the building. They didn't run to CNN with the hunches, but used what they knew to keep themselves out of danger.
I also have several friends who had dreams about 911 and Katrina before the events... multiply that across the population of others who might have.
Some dreams that appear prophetic have no conclusive ending. I believe that's because we have choices to make, and God hopes we will all act wisely and in love... but can't control our responses.
God hears the plans of men in secret, and is able to dispense the information to His people before an event occurs.
We don't seek out dreams and visions. They just come, and we have to decide whether we will respond in a Christ-like way.
