Do dreams mean anything?

[Christgirl67]

For me, repetitive dreams can signal to me that there is a deeper issue I may need to ask for God's help and healing with on an ongoing basis. For example, I have lost quite a few close loved ones and occassionally have dreams often relating to abandonment which I take as a hint from God that I likely have deeper issues related to loss that I need to keep bringing honestly before Him so I can work through my grief.

I think it is helpful to ask God during your prayer time with Him if your dreams are maybe hinting that there is a deeper issue He wants to help you resolve? If not, it could just be meaningless but there have been times in my life that dreams have been God's way of getting my attention in regards to needing more of His guidance on a particular situation...oh and sometimes I have really happy dreams that bring me a unique comfort/reassurance from God too. I think God can speak to us through a variety of different ways for a variety of different meanings.

Just my 2 cents though...hope you have a blessed day : )

That is what I was thinking.I sometimes have dreams about family issues or issues that have bothered me in my life,and I figured it was something I needed to bring for God.

 

[Presbyterian Continuist]

Since Christians are to have love for one another and signs and wonders are for those who need proof, I have little confidence your dream is from the Lord.
Blessings

I never said my dream was from the Lord. It is more of a demonstration that one can say he had a dream but all he is doing is just stating a personal opinion in the genre of a dream. John Bunyan did that with his Pilgrim's Progress.
John Skelton, the Tudor poet in his poem against Cardinal Wolsey put his words in the mouth of a parrot and called it "Speke Parrot".
My "dream" is the first paragraph of the new book I an writing called, "Why are Folks Sickly and Dying Before Their Time in Your Church?"

 

[Christgirl67]

I never said my dream was from the Lord. It is more of a demonstration that one can say he had a dream but all he is doing is just stating a personal opinion in the genre of a dream. John Bunyan did that with his Pilgrim's Progress.
John Skelton, the Tudor poet in his poem against Cardinal Wolsey put his words in the mouth of a parrot and called it "Speke Parrot".
My "dream" is the first paragraph of the new book I an writing called, "Why are Folks Sickly and Dying Before Their Time in Your Church?"

I understand what you mean,that makes sense

 

[Presbyterian Continuist]

I understand what you mean,that makes sense

I was thinking about the bit in 1 Corinthians 11 where Paul said that because folk did not appreciate the significance of the Lord's Supper, many were sickly and dying before their time.

I am an elder in a small suburban Presbyterian church, but still maintain my Pentecostal theology. It is an aging congregation and we have had people dying before their time, one was a man in his early 40s. We have two members was cancer issues, but in remission at present, but a couple of years ago, the wife of a member contracted a brain tumour and wasted away over 12 months. She was around 45 years of age - gone before her time, leaving a grieving husband.

The problem with my church is that although there is a mental assent that God can heal, they do not have the faith to enter into it. This is because the very strong influence of Cessationism in the evangelical churches. Also, in times past, there has been some who have had critical spirits, and the ministers we have had have suffered through it, plus we have had two very controlling ministers.

So it is no surprise that the Holy Spirit keeps away and nothing supernatural happens. I don't like Cessationists and I don't believe they are truly converted to Christ, because they lack compassion for sick people and spread their lies, corrupting the faith of good people. That's why I posted my "dream".

When I wrote the first half of my book and got to page 30, I felt that it was not hard-hitting enough to provide the challenge needed to either cause a riot or a revival. It was in the dead of night that I got the idea of writing the first two paragraphs as dreams. I wrote about a second dream about a big-name evangelist praying for the sick and the sick people not healed. That demonstrates the fraud that happens in many of these big-name "healing meetings", where the reputation of the evangelist is more important to him than having real compassion for the sick.

Sorry that this might seem off-topic, but it provides the background story for my "dream".

 

[Christgirl67]

I was thinking about the bit in 1 Corinthians 11 where Paul said that because folk did not appreciate the significance of the Lord's Supper, many were sickly and dying before their time.

I am an elder in a small suburban Presbyterian church, but still maintain my Pentecostal theology. It is an aging congregation and we have had people dying before their time, one was a man in his early 40s. We have two members was cancer issues, but in remission at present, but a couple of years ago, the wife of a member contracted a brain tumour and wasted away over 12 months. She was around 45 years of age - gone before her time, leaving a grieving husband.

The problem with my church is that although there is a mental assent that God can heal, they do not have the faith to enter into it. This is because the very strong influence of Cessationism in the evangelical churches. Also, in times past, there has been some who have had critical spirits, and the ministers we have had have suffered through it, plus we have had two very controlling ministers.

So it is no surprise that the Holy Spirit keeps away and nothing supernatural happens. I don't like Cessationists and I don't believe they are truly converted to Christ, because they lack compassion for sick people and spread their lies, corrupting the faith of good people. That's why I posted my "dream".

When I wrote the first half of my book and got to page 30, I felt that it was not hard-hitting enough to provide the challenge needed to either cause a riot or a revival. It was in the dead of night that I got the idea of writing the first two paragraphs as dreams. I wrote about a second dream about a big-name evangelist praying for the sick and the sick people not healed. That demonstrates the fraud that happens in many of these big-name "healing meetings", where the reputation of the evangelist is more important to him than having real compassion for the sick.

Sorry that this might seem off-topic, but it provides the background story for my "dream".

I understand what you mean,I am Pentecostal as well.I asked because I was wondering if prophecy and dreams are linked at all.I somewhat think dreams are mainly from a person's subconcious, or it can be random.I have been looking into fellowshipping on a deeper level with God by recognizing the ways he speaks.

 

[Presbyterian Continuist]

I understand what you mean,I am Pentecostal as well.I asked because I was wondering if prophecy and dreams are linked at all.I somewhat think dreams are mainly from a person's subconcious, or it can be random.I have been looking into fellowshipping on a deeper level with God by recognizing the ways he speaks.

I think that prophecy and dreams are the least reliable ways of discerning the voice of God. My old and wise pastor in the 1970s said that to know the voice of God is to be strong in prayer and in the Word. I had to get right away from churches and other people and into the middle of a park before I introduced myself to the Lord and heard His voice inside me for the first time. I can't tell you how it happened, but it was the result of a month or two of seriously seeking God to find out what the blockage was preventing me from knowing Him personally and hearing His voice in my heart. In the end, in desperation I got out in the middle of a park in the dead of night and introduced myself to God. Immediately I felt lit up inside, knew that God was right there, and then heard His voice. It was like my own thoughts but with a strenghtening, resassuring character I have never experienced before. Since then, when I have had discussions with the Lord, He has answered me with Scripture, and the remarkable thing about it is that it is exactly the right Scripture that either confirms or corrects what I am discussing with Him.

I don't pray formal prayers. The best times I have had fellowshipping with the Lord are when I have been walking along an isolated beach on the west coast of the North Island of NZ, with my hands in my pockets just chatting with the Lord about whatever has come to mind. It's like having Jesus walking along beside me, and if He had pockets, He would have His hands in them as well!

He told me that I didn't need dreams, prophecies or visions, because I had His presence with me, and I would always know His voice when He speaks to me. That was nearly 50 years ago and that presence has never left me.

 

[Christgirl67]

I think that prophecy and dreams are the least reliable ways of discerning the voice of God. My old and wise pastor in the 1970s said that to know the voice of God is to be strong in prayer and in the Word. I had to get right away from churches and other people and into the middle of a park before I introduced myself to the Lord and heard His voice inside me for the first time. I can't tell you how it happened, but it was the result of a month or two of seriously seeking God to find out what the blockage was preventing me from knowing Him personally and hearing His voice in my heart. In the end, in desperation I got out in the middle of a park in the dead of night and introduced myself to God. Immediately I felt lit up inside, knew that God was right there, and then heard His voice. It was like my own thoughts but with a strenghtening, resassuring character I have never experienced before. Since then, when I have had discussions with the Lord, He has answered me with Scripture, and the remarkable thing about it is that it is exactly the right Scripture that either confirms or corrects what I am discussing with Him.

I don't pray formal prayers. The best times I have had fellowshipping with the Lord are when I have been walking along an isolated beach on the west coast of the North Island of NZ, with my hands in my pockets just chatting with the Lord about whatever has come to mind. It's like having Jesus walking along beside me, and if He had pockets, He would have His hands in them as well!

He told me that I didn't need dreams, prophecies or visions, because I had His presence with me, and I would always know His voice when He speaks to me. That was nearly 50 years ago and that presence has never left me.

Thank you for your response,that really helped me.I am a fairly new Christian,so I am still learning.

 

[Maria Billingsley]

I never said my dream was from the Lord. It is more of a demonstration that one can say he had a dream but all he is doing is just stating a personal opinion in the genre of a dream. John Bunyan did that with his Pilgrim's Progress.
John Skelton, the Tudor poet in his poem against Cardinal Wolsey put his words in the mouth of a parrot and called it "Speke Parrot".
My "dream" is the first paragraph of the new book I an writing called, "Why are Folks Sickly and Dying Before Their Time in Your Church?"

Oh that's good! I have strong feelings about this subject, faith healing, and I am not a cessationist. Your book sounds interesting however, some believe healing is part of the atonement which in my opinion is not stated in scripture. Healing is also God's will and should not be more than that. Once people believe they are entitled to a healing from God, it becomes the health and wealth gospel and not the Gospel of the Kingdom of God.
Blessings

 

[Presbyterian Continuist]

Oh that's good! I have strong feelings about this subject, faith healing, and I am not a cessationist. Your book sounds interesting however, some believe healing is part of the atonement which in my opinion is not stated in scripture. Healing is also God's will and should not be more than that. Once people believe they are entitled to a healing from God, it becomes the health and wealth gospel and not the Gospel of the Kingdom of God.
Blessings

I'm still working on the book. I've done the main part of it, but still need to write the conclusion giving suggestions about how we can make our lives and church environment where God's power can be present to heal. When I have finished it and it has gone through the editing process, I'll PM you with a copy if you're interested.

It is debatable i guess about healing in the atonement, although Isaiah 53 and Jesus comment about "He has borne our iniquities and carried our diseases" seem to hint at it. Peter says "By His stripes we are healed", and some interpret that as when Jesus was whipped before His crucifixion, it was for our healing. Whether Peter was talking about physical healing, or healing of our souls from sin, it remains for what one wants to believe. I think either is quite true.
Also, Paul says that the Corinthian's disrespect for the Lord's Supper and eating and drinking unworthily caused them to be sickly and folks to die before their time. There is a hint here that the broken body of the Lord (in the bread) was to make us whole, body and spirit; and the shed blood (the wine) was to cleanse us from sin. There has been testimonies of people being healed in the bodies as they have taken the bread of the Lord's Supper.
(Hope you folks don't mind this off-topic post )

There is a good manual on the healing ministry called "Administering the Children's Bread" by Cornel Marais (a Canadian) and Simon Wilson (a fellow NZr whom I have had some great times of fellowship with). Notice that it is entitled "The Children's Bread" and not the "Children's Right". Healing comes through the mercy and grace of God, and it is connected with the sharing and preaching of the Gospel to the unsaved.

A Christian cannot demand God heal them. We have no right to demand anything of God. Affliction and infirmity are a part of the Christian life and if we get healed, we praise God for His mercy and grace. If not, we praise and celebrate for the years of health we have had, and use the time of affliction to get closer to Christ and prepare ourselves for the years of health ahead when He does release us from the affliction.

When I minister (not pray for) healing to a sick person, I do it out of obedience to Jesus' command, "Heal the sick", and not for results. If the results don't happen, a least I have been obedient to the Lord.

Heck! If I go on with this, I will be rewriting my book here! Hahahahaha!

 

[Presbyterian Continuist]

Thank you for your response,that really helped me.I am a fairly new Christian,so I am still learning.

I think a good rule to follow as far as visions, dreams and impressions go, is that nine out of every ten of them come from the world, flesh, or the devil. My way of dealing with them is to take a very long barge pole, give it a bit of a poke, and be prepared to run away if it turns to bite me.

It is good to be like the Bereans in Acts. When Paul came and preached the Gospel to them, they searched the Scriptures to see if what Paul was telling them was true. It is a very good rule to follow when receiving a dream, vision, or an impression. It is also a good rule to follow if someone comes to you and says, "I have a word from the Lord for you." Remember that nine out of every ten unsolicited "words of knowledge" that are given to you could be also from the flesh or the devil. So you can accept the word gracefully, but go away and search the Scriptures to ensure that the word is totally consistent with it before you take any action on it.
( I really felt to say that to you, and maybe it might be a good warning for you, because I got an "impression" hahahahaha! that someone is going to give a "word of knowledge" to you that might hurt you and point you away from Christ).

A word of knowledge does not reveal sin in you. It usually confirms what you know already that you know that the person giving has no knowledge of it. If God does reveal a serious sin through the word of knowledge, it is for the person receiving the word in order to guide intercession for the "sinning" person, not so the word can be blurted out to all and sundry. If the other person needs to be approached, the person who has the word of knowledge must ask the Lord for a word of wisdom on how to approach the person without hurting or embarrassing him or her. The Holy Spirit is kind and gentle, and some getting and giving words of knowledge sometime forget that, and many good people have been hurt and embarrassed by words of knowledge blurted out in public. Whole churches have been blown apart in that way.

 

[Maria Billingsley]

"He has borne our iniquities and carried our diseases" seem to hint at it. Peter says "By His stripes we are healed",

It would make much more sense that it is the healing of our souls. Parallel passage:
1 Peter 2:24
He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.
Blessings

 

[Presbyterian Continuist]

It would make much more sense that it is the healing of our souls. Parallel passage:
1 Peter 2:24
He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.
Blessings

I agree that in the context it does make more sense.

But Matthew 8:16-17 says:
When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick.
This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: He took up our infirmities and bore our diseases.” (Isaiah 53:4).

So Matthew quotes Jesus who interpreted the Isaiah Scripture as meaning healing as well as cleansing from sin.

If indeed, there is physical healing as well as forgiveness of sin through the cross of Christ, the fact that very few are healed in our churches and through the preaching of the Gospel, shows that there may be a missing link somewhere, and it is not because God ever intended that there be a time when the sick are not healed, as some try to show through theological juggling and manipulation.

I have come to the conclusion that the fault lies with the Church. There is too much jealously, envy, empire-building, controlling attitudes, heart sins, worldliness, spiritual abuse, critical spirits going on, which God sees, and He will not allow the Holy Spirit to work where those things are happening. And these things are happening in most churches.

Many leaders are not willing to admit the dysfunction that is happening in their churches so they try to cover it up by saying that the age of miracles has ceased. The truth is that there is "sin in the camp", and God has withdrawn His power for that reason and not that He intended for the ministry of divine healing to cease when the last Apostle died, or the canon of Scripture was established.

What is needed is to root out the jealousy, envy, selfish ambition, criticising, hypocrisy, secret sinning, unkindness, misuse of spiritual gifts, unbelief, lack of self-control, etc., before we will see any significant demonstration of the Holy Spirit and power.

 

[Messerve]

The vast majority are just your creative mind sorting through and trying to make sense of information you've gained during your waking hours.

I think it's safe to say that a small minority of Christians will have a small percentage of dreams that are actually from God with a specific meaning for that person. I have personally had two like that so far and I'm 27. I also write worship music in dreams which I record when I awake...

But most of my dreams are just super random bizarre-ness.

 

[sunshineforJesus]

Yes,I believe Jesus speaks to us through dreams and visions.

 

[JCFantasy23]

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We are moving this thread to a section where it is a better fit.

This particular topic belongs in the Spiritual Gift's sub-forum, Sign Gifts. Please continue your discussion here.​

 

[DreamerOfTheHeart]

Can God talk to us through dreams?I sometimes have very vivid dreams about my family and friends.Ever since I was little,I have always had dreams about running away from a problem, and I am just wondering does that have a deeper meaning or not.

Yes, but you need to hear the Spirit within. To be able to discern between flesh, and the Spirit.

From your description, it does not sound apocalyptic. But, that you are wondering as to the source, might be a nudge, to face your problems.

Dreams are an aspect of us, as we are made in the Image of God. It tells us the evidence that this is true. Because just as we create our own worlds, and go down into it, so too, does God do.

 

[Francis Drake]

Bible gives accounts of dreams and visions. I don't pay any attention to mine at all. The way I look at it is it's my mind out of control LOL
God Bless.

There's your answer eleos.
I believe God speaks through dreams because our intellect is in shut down mode and less likely to get in the way.

 

[Francis Drake]

If I have to interpret a dream, I don't. I let it go.

Then its quite likely you've missed out on what God was saying.
As the bible constantly shows, dreams are usually like parables, and parables always need interpreting.

In the New Testament, when God or an angel appeared in a dream, there was a definite message involved that needed no interpretation.

You only have to look at the dreams in the book of Revelation to see how wrong that claim is.

Although I see that there is a gift of interpretation of tongues, I don't see any gift of interpretation of dreams, so if it ain't in the New Testament it ain't true for me.

You can't argue from absence of evidence.
Acts2v17"'In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.
According to your method of interpretation, this scripture forbids young men having dreams and forbids old men from having visions because they are not mentioned as such.
ie. If it ain't in the New Testament it ain't true.

 

[eleos1954]

There's your answer eleos.
I believe God speaks through dreams because our intellect is in shut down mode and less likely to get in the way.

All my dreams are usually non-sensical and bizarre, and I don't dream very much at all. I'm sure if they were in fact from Him He would make that known to me. Others have a different experience ... maybe so ... I can't attest to them .... can only attest to my own experiences.

God Bless.

 

[Presbyterian Continuist]

Then its quite likely you've missed out on what God was saying.
As the bible constantly shows, dreams are usually like parables, and parables always need interpreting.

You only have to look at the dreams in the book of Revelation to see how wrong that claim is.

You can't argue from absence of evidence.
Acts2v17"'In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.
According to your method of interpretation, this scripture forbids young men having dreams and forbids old men from having visions because they are not mentioned as such.
ie. If it ain't in the New Testament it ain't true.

The Lord has told me directly that I don't need dreams or visions for insight and guidance because He is quite capable to speaking to my spirit and discussing any issue that may arise. However, I have had dreams about someone I know, and I asked the Lord about them and He told me that He did that to alert me to pray for that person.