The Dream
My son, Ty, called and asked if I would want to come and watch their three kids while he, and his wife, Tina, did work from home. This is not something out of the norm. On occasion Ty will call and ask if I can do this, and as a proud grandma, I am happy to oblige. So, in my dream, I got in my car and headed to his house on what was an overcast, cloudy, day. Half-way to his home I realized something shockingly bazaar. I was barefoot and braless!
A little farther down the road I decided on a whim, to not go to my son’s home, but rather, to take a drive. I, the girl with a fear of traveling had chosen to go off a familiar route for a road I’d never traveled; Alone, barefoot, and–braless.
My journey took me into a quaint town where the storefronts were ever so inviting, I decided to go shopping. Yes, shopping. Barefoot and braless.
The stores must not have had any postings about shoes needing to be worn to enter the establishments. Throughout the afternoon I freely went in and out of the stores, not once getting kicked out for being, you said it, barefoot, and braless.
Located in a dip at the middle of the town was a quilt shop. I entered the shop and while there time slipped away from me as I shared with some folks the story of the Immanuel Quilt. By the time I left the shop, the day had turned to night.
Not wanting Tom to worry about me (I do have an eye issue in which I am not supposed to drive at night), I reached for my phone to call him. I was going to tell him that I would just stay the night at the Cornerstone Inn at the outskirts of town. But, when I reached for my phone, I didn’t have it. I had been out all day barefoot, braless, and phoneless!
No problem, I would call Tom from the Inn. But first I needed to walk a little farther, in the darkness, and up a hill–barefoot and braless.
Focused on the Cornerstone, without worry, I tread through the darkness and up the hill. Once I hit the crest, the sun was brightly shining.
I woke from my dream barefoot and…
Analogy
I asked God what this dream was about. Immediately, “Freedom,” was whispered into my thoughts.
There is perhaps nothing that expresses freedom more to women than the stripping of brassieres and shoes after a long day. Jesus says, “Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” (Matthew 11:30 Msg)
In what started out as a normal, routine, and familiar activity, going to watch my grandkids, turned into a trip outside my sphere of norm and a journey into something new. As the Ruler of all things, God says, “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” (Isaiah 43:19)
More and more we see things outside the box of what we used to call normal. I think we can agree that we have seemingly been wandering in a wilderness since the onset of Covid. God is wanting us to step outside our comfort zones, outside of spheres of norm, and journey with Him to new places. In freedom.
For months businesses have been posting mandate requirements on the wearing of masks. However, in my dream, I freely went into store after store, not once being asked to leave for not being appropriately covered.
Barefoot and braless, a symbol of living freely and lightly. Walking out of the quilt store into a dip of darkness, I was reminded of Psalm 23:4 “Though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, we will fear no evil for God is with us.” Here the Bible tells us that the valley of the shadow of death—is evil.
Friend, if you have confessed Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you need not fear the evil. Eternal life awaits you!
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,
That whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. —John 3:16
Yes, Barefoot and Braless, it was a dream about freedom. Jesus climbed the Calvary Mountain to free us from sin and the shadow of death. Whom the Son sets free is free indeed. (John 8:36)
Keep the faith. Just a little bit farther, up the hill, the SON is shining!
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“For you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings.
And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall.” —Malachi 4:2
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May the Hope of Christ fill you with indescribable joy this Christmas. To God be all Glory and Honor. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
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If you would like to know more about learning how to live freely and lightly in Christ, please email me at Joni@ImmanuelQuiltMinistry.com.