Dowel Rods (Wormwood)

[Christsfreeservant]

Monday, August 24, 2009, 7:15 a.m. – I woke from A DREAM: At the end of the dream, there were two little piles of something on the floor that were trying to be burned by someone(s). My DIL, Faith was trying to light a fire to one of the piles of these little pieces that looked like dowel rods. I believe she said she was doing this for her child. I saw her adding a dowel rod to the pile and then trying to light it, but it wouldn’t light or it wouldn’t stay lit.

She wanted to light this pile of dowel rods and then go somewhere. I said it was best if she did not do that because when we came back, the place could be on fire. So, I stopped her from lighting the pile and then leaving it.

Earlier in the dream, a man was lamenting to me about something that had happened to him. I told him that I did not have a close relationship with him, so he began to cry and then I comforted him with a hug. END

I also woke to this song: And Can It Be That I Should Gain / Charles Wesley / Thomas Campbell

And can it be, that I should gain
An interest in the Saviour's blood?
Died He for me, who caused His pain
For me, who Him to death pursued?
Amazing love! how can it be
That Thou, my God, shoulds't die for me?

He left His Father's throne above,
So free, so infinite His grace,
Emptied Himself of all but love,
And bled for Adam's helpless race:
'Tis mercy all, immense and free;
For, O my God, it found out me!

Long my imprisoned spirit lay
Fast bound in sin and nature's night;
Thine eye diffused a quickening ray,
I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth and followed Thee.

No condemnation now I dread;
Jesus, and all in Him, is mine!
Alive in Him, my living Head,
And clothed in righteousness divine,
Bold I approach the eternal throne,
And claim the crown, through Christ my own.

•A dowel is a solid cylindrical rod, usually made of wood, plastic or metal. In its original manufactured form, dowel is called dowel rod. Dowel rod is employed in numerous, diverse applications. It is used to form axles in toys, as detents on gymnastics grips, as knitting needles and as structural reinforcement in cabinet making. Dowel rod is often cut into short lengths called dowel pins, which are used in various ways (www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dowel_rod):

• As shelf supports in furniture.
• As moveable pieces (i.e., pegs) in games.
• As supports for hanging items such as keyrings and tools.
• To secure two objects together with precise alignment in a dowel joint: a hole is bored in both objects and the dowel pin is inserted into the aligned holes.

Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening. I read Lamentations 3:

I am the man who has seen affliction
by the rod of his wrath.
2 He has driven me away and made me walk
in darkness rather than light;
3 indeed, he has turned his hand against me
again and again, all day long.
4 He has made my skin and my flesh grow old
and has broken my bones.
5 He has besieged me and surrounded me
with bitterness and hardship.

6 He has made me dwell in darkness
like those long dead.
7 He has walled me in so I cannot escape;
he has weighed me down with chains.
8 Even when I call out or cry for help,
he shuts out my prayer.
9 He has barred my way with blocks of stone;
he has made my paths crooked.
10 Like a bear lying in wait,
like a lion in hiding,
11 he dragged me from the path and mangled me
and left me without help.

12 He drew his bow
and made me the target for his arrows.
13 He pierced my heart
with arrows from his quiver.
14 I became the laughingstock of all my people;
they mock me in song all day long.
15 He has filled me with bitter herbs
and sated me with gall.
16 He has broken my teeth with gravel;
he has trampled me in the dust.
17 I have been deprived of peace;
I have forgotten what prosperity is.
18 So I say, "My splendor is gone
and all that I had hoped from the LORD."

19 I remember my affliction and my wandering,
the bitterness and the gall.
20 I well remember them,
and my soul is downcast within me.
21 Yet this I call to mind
and therefore I have hope:
22 Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
23 They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
24 I say to myself, "The LORD is my portion;
therefore I will wait for him."

25 The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him,
to the one who seeks him;
26 it is good to wait quietly
for the salvation of the LORD.
27 It is good for a man to bear the yoke
while he is young.
28 Let him sit alone in silence,
for the LORD has laid it on him.
29 Let him bury his face in the dust—
there may yet be hope.
30 Let him offer his cheek to one who would strike him,
and let him be filled with disgrace.

31 For men are not cast off
by the Lord forever.
32 Though he brings grief, he will show compassion,
so great is his unfailing love.
33 For he does not willingly bring affliction
or grief to the children of men.
34 To crush underfoot
all prisoners in the land,
35 to deny a man his rights
before the Most High,
36 to deprive a man of justice—
would not the Lord see such things?
37 Who can speak and have it happen
if the Lord has not decreed it?
38 Is it not from the mouth of the Most High
that both calamities and good things come?

39 Why should any living man complain
when punished for his sins?
40 Let us examine our ways and test them,
and let us return to the LORD.
41 Let us lift up our hearts and our hands
to God in heaven, and say:
42 "We have sinned and rebelled
and you have not forgiven.
43 "You have covered yourself with anger and pursued us;
you have slain without pity.
44 You have covered yourself with a cloud
so that no prayer can get through.
45 You have made us scum and refuse
among the nations.

46 "All our enemies have opened their mouths
wide against us.
47 We have suffered terror and pitfalls,
ruin and destruction."
48 Streams of tears flow from my eyes
because my people are destroyed.
49 My eyes will flow unceasingly,
without relief,
50 until the LORD looks down
from heaven and sees.
51 What I see brings grief to my soul
because of all the women of my city.
52 Those who were my enemies without cause
hunted me like a bird.
53 They tried to end my life in a pit
and threw stones at me;
54 the waters closed over my head,
and I thought I was about to be cut off.
55 I called on your name, O LORD,
from the depths of the pit.
56 You heard my plea: "Do not close your ears
to my cry for relief."
57 You came near when I called you,
and you said, "Do not fear."

58 O Lord, you took up my case;
you redeemed my life.
59 You have seen, O LORD, the wrong done to me.
Uphold my cause!
60 You have seen the depth of their vengeance,
all their plots against me.
61 O LORD, you have heard their insults,
all their plots against me-
62 what my enemies whisper and mutter
against me all day long.
63 Look at them! Sitting or standing,
they mock me in their songs.
64 Pay them back what they deserve, O LORD,
for what their hands have done.
65 Put a veil over their hearts,
and may your curse be on them!
66 Pursue them in anger and destroy them
from under the heavens of the LORD.

To be continued...

 

[Christsfreeservant]

My Understanding: Jeremiah was representing all of Judah in his expressions of grief over his and their suffering at the hand of Almighty God. So, “the man” is not merely Jeremiah, but it is the whole of the nation who were under God’s judgment. Translated to today and to our time period and to where I live, I believe that “the man” is the USA who is coming under God’s acts of judgment right now, or he could be the whole of man-kind. And, this also parallels with “the man” in my dream.

So much of the language of this chapter in Lamentations, nonetheless, reminded me of Biblical prophecies and fulfillments concerning the suffering of Jesus Christ, too, who is our representative to the Father (those of us who are in Christ Jesus). So, he also is “the man” who took upon himself all of our sin. He said to the Father, “Why have you forsaken me?” He was cut off from the Father because of the sins of the world that he had taken upon himself in order that we might be free. So, Jeremiah, in representing the people, was a type of Christ – an intercessor for the people and who felt their pain and their suffering as though it was his own, and some was his.

The hymn “And Can It Be That I Should Gain” parallels over to the dream and to the scripture, in particularly, when it speaks of the dungeon and the chains. V. 7 states: “He has walled me in…” (NIV Commentary states this is like being in a dungeon) and “he has weighed me down with chains.” The hymn described these chains and dungeon as related to our sin that enslaves us, that holds and weighs us down and that imprisons us so that we are not free. Jeremiah also relates this judgment of God as coming upon man because of his sins.

When I got to v. 15 where it states: “He has filled me with bitter herbs and sated me with gall,” I immediately thought of how the guards at Jesus’ crucifixion gave him a drink of wine mixed with gall. He tasted it, then refused it. There are several schools of thought on why he refused it, one of which is that wine mixed with gall was a pain-killing narcotic, so Jesus refused it because he would rather experience the terrible sufferings of the crucifixion with his senses intact.

In reading commentaries on this, I was led to the meaning of gall which was “wormwood” which then led me to Revelation 8 where “John sees a fiery star fall on the rivers and springs of water and turn a part of these fresh-water supplies into very bitter water. The star’s name is ‘Wormwood’, which refers to a bitter herb found in the Near East and mentioned elsewhere in the Bible” (Zondervan NIV Bible Commentary).

Then, as I thought of the word ‘Wormwood,’ I saw these dowel rods that look like worms and are made of wood. So, I saw: 1) Gall = Wormwood; 2) Dowel Rod = Wormwood; 3) Wormwood = God’s judgment; 4) Wormwood = bitter herb and fiery star and 5) Rod = God’s wrath; judgment. Also, I saw that the “trumpets” of judgment in Revelation 8 paralleled the plagues of Egypt prior to the exodus of Israel and its freedom from bondage to Egypt.

Ok, in the dream, Faith (usually represents apostate faith in my dreams) added a dowel rod to a pile of dowel rods and she tried to set them on fire, but they wouldn’t light or would not stay lit. She wanted to light them and then leave, but I cautioned her and stopped her from doing so. In vv. 37-38 it states that no one can speak and have something happen unless the Lord decrees it, so I’m representing God here in setting limits on what can happen. And, it continues by stating that both calamities and good things come from the mouth of the Most High. So, it appears here that God is limiting a calamity or is stopping one from being inflamed while the person desiring to set it aflame is gone. Otherwise, it might set the whole place on fire.

It also occurred to me that dowel rods are often used to connect two things together such as timing (timer) and judgment (heat). The dowel rods are also a symbol of something that is bitter. Jeremiah stated that God had satisfied his appetite or desire with this bitter herb (wormwood/dowel rod). Yet, when he remembered his sin, he had hope because of the Lord’s great love and compassion, the result of which is that he was not consumed. I think of a fire as consuming whatever it touches. He continues by stating that though God brings grief (trials, hardship, discipline), he will show compassion (like I did with the man in the dream). And then we are reminded of the complete sovereignty of God and how nothing can happen to us unless God has decreed it. He allows and he prevents.

Jeremiah then reminds us of the justice of Almighty God when he states that we should not complain if we are being punished for our sins. The purpose of this judgment is to punish, but it is also to correct. Jeremiah calls the people to examine their ways (our ways) and to test them and to let us return to the LORD. That is the object – to return to the LORD. God will allow our enemies to come against us for a time as his act of divine correction and discipline, but once he has accomplished his purposes, he will comfort us again just like I comforted that man. When we forsake our sin and turn to Jesus in faith and repentance, he removes those chains that once bound us and he frees our hearts to follow after him.

Then, I noticed v. 45 which states: “You have made us scum and refuse among the nations. All our enemies have opened their mouths wide against us.” There is a sense here in what Jeremiah states that gives both a feeling that some of this is deserved punishment for sin and other of this is unjust suffering because he is a servant of the Lord. Anyway, when I pictured “refuse” I saw those two piles on the floor that were about to be burned up. Even though Jeremiah and his countrymen were going through a severe time of trial, still they experienced the comfort of God’s love and compassion and forgiveness when they called out to Him in faith and in repentance.

In reading back over my notes, I discovered that I had related this pile of dowel rods that Faith (apostate faith) was trying to light to vv. 60-61a which states: “You have seen the depth of their vengeance, all their plots against me. O LORD, you have heard their insults…” Jeremiah called out to God for his intervention, and God heard his prayer. And, in the dream I saw intervention when God, I believe, stopped Faith (apostate faith) from setting these dowel rods on fire and leaving them.

Later in the day: My husband and I were talking about our clothes dryer which broke over the weekend. I had told him that I thought it had two problems – 1) No Heat and 2) The Timer didn’t work. He relayed this back to me in conversation and how the Lord, he believed, had reminded him that I said there were two problems. He went to the parts store, bought the parts, and he repaired the dryer.

As he reminded me of those “two problems” I thought of this dream where Faith (apostate faith usually) tried to light a fire to this pile of dowel rods but it would not light or would not stay lit, so problem one – No fire, i.e. no heat. Then, she wanted to light the fire to the dowel rods and then leave to go somewhere but I stopped her from doing that, i.e. I kept her from lighting it and leaving, so problem two – the timing (timer). It appeared to me that the “heat” represents some kind of judgment or discipline and that me stopping it from happening while “faith” was gone or while whomever she represents in the dream was gone was a matter of timing.

This is all the understanding I have at this time, though I sense it will become clearer in time.

 

[Christsfreeservant]

I saw three news articles that I believe have a bearing on the understanding of this dream, Dowel Rods. The first was Feingold: No health care bill before Christmas: Large Mercer crowd opposes reform plans - Denied:1up! Software ().

"Nobody is going to bring a bill before Christmas, and maybe not even then, if this ever happens," Feingold said. "The divisions are so deep. I never seen anything like that."

As soon as I read that, I immediately had a picture of these two piles of stuff to be burned, one of which contained these dowel rods whose purpose is to join two objects together. I saw both the depth of these piles and that there were two separate piles.

“The senator said again last week he did not think a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach would work as well as giving states program flexibility.”

When I read that, I thought of how Faith wanted to set the pile of dowel rods on fire and then leave, which thus have set the whole floor ablaze.

“The nation's growing deficit was a major topic, too, and Feingold repeatedly cited his credentials as a balanced-budget type of senator.”

I definitely saw these piles as national debt that was growing, at least the pile with the dowel rods was growing and was still being added to, I believe by this health-care reform.

This provides a good segue into the next article. This one is called “Obama Raises ’10 Deficit Outlook…” - Obama Raises ?10 Deficit Outlook 19% to $1.5 Trillion (Update3) - Bloomberg.com

This article talks about a forecast of a projected deficit of $1.5 trillion next year which is higher than previous forecasts because of a “recession that was deeper and longer than expected,” White House budget chief Peter Orszag said.

I plugged in that this is a reference to this current pile of dowel rods that is being added to and that is not able to be burned. I don’t quite understand the meaning behind burning this pile, but found this possible explanation: "The Burning Platform" by James Quinn. FSO Editorial 02/18/2009

"The US government is on a “burning platform” of unsustainable policies and practices with fiscal deficits, chronic healthcare underfunding, immigration and overseas military commitments threatening a crisis if action is not taken soon."

I did feel that this floor on which the two piles were located was a stage, i.e. a platform of some type.

Back to the Bloomberg article, and as I thought about the part of the dream, “He Hid Behind a Bench,” where Obama turned into a white actor James Brolin and that I could see the wrinkles around his eyes, I decided to look up this Peter Orszag. He actually has the same coloring and wrinkles as James Brolin. I believe the Lord was showing me Brolin in order to lead me to Orszag, with whom I was not familiar, but he may also be telling me that Orszag, who speaks for Obama, is an actor.

“The budget shortfall for 2010 would mark the second straight year of trillion-dollar deficits.”

Here I also saw the two piles. Only one seemed to be current and was being added to. Then, the article continued by stating that John Boehner of Ohio called for Congress to impose “strict annual caps on federal spending.” And, he stated that the health-care overhaul “is just the latest in a long line of expensive Democratic experiments that will add to the deficit…”

So, I definitely saw Faith as adding health-care reform to the pile of deficit. Lastly, I read this article, “White House projects bigger deficits, bigger debt.” White House projects bigger deficits, bigger debt - Yahoo! News. The article spoke of “mounting debt,” i.e. the piles.

“Obama himself may have drowned out the rising deficit news with the announcement Tuesday that he intends to nominate Ben Bernanke to a second term as chairman of the Federal Reserve.”

In this dream, I stopped Faith from setting the pile of dowel rods ablaze because she was leaving. So, I asked myself, “Who just left?” Obama just went on vacation. Congress has been in recess several weeks. Is the setting of this pile on fire a reference to “flaming” the news of this? I felt as though Faith’s actions were compared to v. 46 where it states that “all our enemies have opened their mouths against us.” So, am I representing Obama, too, in stopping this “flaming” of the news temporarily? The object would be not to cause a disturbance to the financial markets, which is inevitable.

Ok, as I read down in the article, and it stated: “The alarm bells on our nation's fiscal condition have now become a siren," Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said. "If anyone had any doubts that this burden on future generations is unsustainable, they're gone — spending, borrowing and debt are out of control."

That took me back to the dream, “He Hid Behind a Bench” in which Obama was in prison and was trying to escape but someone set off the alarm, which is why he then hid beside (the left side) the bench. He tried to escape again, but then there was a disaster, so his fellow inmates created a disturbance so that he could escape, which he did. I’m not sure yet what that means. Only I do believe that following his escape (his vacation?) this Peter Orszag (the white actor) has been speaking for him.

In the dream he was explaining why he should not have to pay for his crime. I get the sense that Obama’s crime is what he has done to the fiscal condition of our country. I pray the Lord will continue to grant further understanding.

 

[Christsfreeservant]

Friday, August 28, 2009 – I saw a political cartoon in today’s newspaper (The Charlotte Observer) in which there was a round platform that was cracked down the middle (front to back, just like these two piles were situated in my dream, Dowel Rods - Wormwood) sitting on top of a brick surface. On the platform was a flame. The caption underneath the picture read “The Eternal Flame.” Above the picture was a quote by Senator Edward Kennedy: “… The cause endures, the hope still lives and the dream shall never die.”

I immediately had a picture in my mind of this dream where these two piles sat on a platform and were situated front to back. I sensed the piles represented national debt, deficit, divisions over health-care reform, and adding to the pile in the front symbolized adding health-care reform to a pile of debt and/or it represented health-care reform (the bill). My DIL Faith (who usually represents apostate faith) wanted to set the pile on fire (to enflame it) before she left and then to leave, but I didn’t allow her to do that. She was having great difficulty setting it aflame anyway.

As I looked at this cartoon this afternoon, immediately I saw Faith as representing Edward Kennedy who did try to ignite health-care reform before his death. This was his “baby.” So, the person “leaving” was Kennedy, who was not able to set this aflame before he left this world. The picture that I got from my dream, nonetheless, was that this was a problem with lack of heat behind it and a problem with timing. Perhaps it will take Kennedy’s death to enflame health-care reform (to set it on fire) and that will fix both the problem of “heat” as well as “timing.” Our government leaders are certainly trying to use Kennedy’s death to reignite this health-care reform in his name.