“Then he dreamed still another dream and told it to his brothers, and said, “Look, I have dreamed another dream. And this time, the sun, the moon, and the eleven stars bowed down to me.” So he told it to his father and his brothers; and his father rebuked him and said to him, “What is this dream that you have dreamed? Shall your mother and I and your brothers indeed come to bow down to the earth before you?” And his brothers envied him, but his father kept the matter in mind.”
Genesis 37:9-11 NKJV
I still remember the first dream Randal ever shared with me that awakened me to the idea of G-d speaking to me – and to him – in a creative way.
“Mommy! I fly up in a plane – a big, yellow plane, and I fly around and around and I drop presents to people on the ground!”
“That’s cool,” I reply, only half listening to my then 3 year old while I got breakfast ready.
Then – the very next day – he had the same dream about the same yellow plane dropping the same presents to the same people on the ground.
This time I paid attention. I thought about it throughout our morning routine and when I finally had time alone with the Lord, I asked Him about it. His response – “pay attention.”
Dream interpretation was not new to me. I’d taken some classes at our church, Shady Grove, so I dusted off my handy little book to look up symbols:
Plane – often speaks of prophetic things
Vehicles – often speak of ministry or calling
Presents – spiritual gifts
After praying over it, I believed G-d was beginning to speak about a calling on Randal’s life. So I prayed – and treasured it in my heart – and in a journal. More dreams came and years later, after church one day, Randal told us he felt called to be a “worshipping missionary” who sang about the holiness of G-d and taught people how to worship. What he heard confirmed what G-d started speaking years earlier.
Many have asked us how we’ve raised worshippers and while there are many small, intentional things we’ve done over the years, teaching them to hear G-d’s voice for themselves has been one of the most critical – and one way He speaks is through dreams and visions.
Father – thank You that You still speak today! I am so grateful! Give me ears to hear and a heart to receive Your word. Give me wisdom to understand what You want to speak through my dreams and give me wisdom to encourage and train the arrows You entrusted to me. Help me follow Your voice alone. Amen.
Below are some tips some have asked for based on our experience about dreams and kids along with resources.
Tips:
* šāmar – the Hebrew word that means “to keep or to treasure (in one’s heart)”. It was used to describe Adam “keeping” the garden and used here to describe how Israel (Jacob) “kept the dream in mind. It is crucial to pay attention to G-d’s voice – no matter where it comes from. Hold onto what He says. His words do not return void.
*write down as many details as possible – the details can matter. Consider keeping a dream journal that’s just for their dreams.
*color – pay attention to dreams in color. From our experience, more often than not, dreams with color are from Him.
*repetitive – if dreams repeat themselves, pay close attention to them.
*pray – ask G-d about the dream and the meaning. Interpretation comes from Him alone.
*test – does the dream line up with G-d’s Word? Does the meaning line up with His character? His voice brings peace and conviction.
*train- talk to your kids about their dreams. Look up symbols. Share what each symbol can mean then put it together. It’s usually very clear.
Some resources – the area of understanding dreams, can get pretty out there into spiritualism that does not line up with the Word of G-d. Here are some I’ve used:
Understanding the dreams you dream – Milligan: