Yesterday our pastor opened with a story of young twin boys who were completely opposite of one another. One was a pessimist and the other an optimist. With concern their parents talked to a psychologist asking how they might help their boys learn to discern matters with the right perspective. The psychologist suggested for the boys next birthday to shower the pessimist with all sorts of gifts, and for the optimist—to nicely wrap a large box of manure. It was a test to see if the twins would respond any differently.
Staying true to form, the pessimist complained about every gift he opened. Not the right color. The car didn’t go fast enough. And so on and so on. The optimist, he opened his gift and just started laughing. He told his parents, “You can’t fool me. A box with this much manure has to have a pony in it.”
How many times do we look at our situations with the wrong perspective? God showed me in my dream last night that it’s what I’ve doing. He showed me that as of late—I’ve been acting like a pessimist full of complaints.
The Dream…
Scene One: My husband, Tom, and I were standing in the kitchen of a new home my son had apparently just bought. The kitchen appeared to be a third of the size of our home. It was incredibly large, had all the newest, most high-tech appliances available and was equipped with several cook tops. The countertops were oddly about a foot taller than standard height. I stood complaining to my husband.
“Why would our son buy this house? He doesn’t need a kitchen of this size? And those countertops! He’s not a giant. Why would he want those?”
Scene Two: After spending the night at our son’s new home we woke to find that he had made us breakfast before having gone to work. He’d made enough to feed an army. There was bacon, eggs, sausage, biscuits and gravy, fruit, and smoothies—you name it—he had fixed it. There was food everywhere that he had prepared just for us. Yet…I complained.
“Why did he make all this food? There is only the two of us. I can’t even reach the stove-top. I’ll have to get a ladder to fill my plate. And this mess! It’s going to take me all morning to clean it up.”
In my dream my husband responds with an answer that is so typical of something he would say. “It’s all right. I’ll fill your plate for you. I’ll get you whatever you want and do whatever you need.”
Scene Three: I see my mother standing in the kitchen and I tell her that I didn’t know that she was there. She held up a pair of aloe infused socks and said, “I came for these.” I remember thinking in the dream: Why would you go to your grandson’s home for a pair of socks?
After that I woke up.
Now you may think this is just a weird dream, but not me. I know that God was definitely pointing out my poor behavior and trying to get my attention. Under pressuring anxiety at the thought of traveling alone to Ohio to speak at the Igniting Souls Conference and at the reality that the book, The Immanuel Quilt will be out in a few days a spiritual warfare was going on within me. With increasing doubts and fears–my emotions were all over the place. I began complaining, and crying, about everything: traveling alone, having purchased a large quantity of books that no one might want to buy. Even my hair cut and having to dog sit had me in a dither. Complaint. Complaint. Complaint. Sin. Sin. Sin. So…God chose a dream to show me I had the wrong perspective on the situation.
Analyzing the Dream
The house was not our son’s home. It represented God’s house. He dwells with those who abide in Him. Tom and my son were representing attributes of Jesus.
Our son is always doing more than what is necessary. For example, in his high school speech class instead of just giving his speech—he dressed in costume. In college not making the school’s baseball team, rather than just joining a league team, he formed a team. He didn’t just order the team t-shirts either. He went out, secured sponsorships and provided the team with uniforms. This is what God does—He provides us with more than what is necessary.
Tom represented other attributes of Jesus: loving-kindness and a generous, giving spirit and one who is always willing to serve others. In the dream Tom had said, “It’s all right. I’ll fill your plate for you. I’ll get you whatever you want and do whatever you need.” This is exactly what Jesus says to us.
The high countertop—the one out of reach—represents this journey that I am on with the Immanuel Quilt. In a million years I would never have dreamed of being called into a traveling ministry or writing a book. I thought these were unattainable things out of reach for me. Yet look what God has done. He’s made the impossible possible.
What about those socks? Well, they were special socks coated with aloe to sooth the feet. These are the kind of socks that create a sensation of a spa-like experience…which of course brings peace and tranquility.
Through a dream I was allowed to see that I needed to change my perspective from that of a pessimist to that of an optimist. And asking God to forgive me, I then I thanked Him for the gift of this incredible journey. Thanks to the Lord for fitting my feet with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.
This is the BIG week guys. In just three days, the books will be in my hands. There is still time to pre-order your copy HERE and receive devotionals on thirty Names of Jesus before the offer expires at the end of the month. As always keep following and keep sharing the Immanuel Quilt Journey.