This morning I woke up out of a dream that was very unique and one that brought up an issue I have rarely dealt with in my Christian walk. Here is the dream:
I was at a church and we were praying for people after the service which is quite commonplace for the congregations I have been a part of for many years. Anyway, there were some ladies who knew me and asked me to come join them as they were praying for three other ladies. They had moved from the main sanctuary to another prayer room, and when I walked in I saw the three ladies that were being prayed for, all laying next to each other on the floor (Again this is not uncommon in the churches I frequent). It was quiet and people were praying for them, and they all looked quite serene.
As I walked into the room, I felt the Holy Spirit say to me that one of them was lying to Him! That certainly stopped me in my tracks, and it was certainly not something I expected to hear. I felt like the Holy Spirit gave me some quick understanding and a loving approach, so I went over and leaned over the ladies and very quietly asked them if one of them was lying to the Holy Spirit? The little old lady in the middle raised her hand sheepishly. I again felt inspired by the Holy Spirit to tell her the following bit, "If you go to the doctor for a sore throat, but you don't tell him that you recently poured scalding water down your throat, he won't be able treat you correctly!"
That is where I woke up!
To say I was surprised by the dream and the theme would be understatement! I share it this morning because I once again felt led by the Holy Spirit to do so, and because this is a very interesting topic, and one that bears reflection.
Scripturally speaking this topic is raised a few times, and usually with pretty scary admonitions. We have the story of Ananias and Sapphira found in Acts 5:1-11, and that section is titled "Lying to the Holy Spirit" in my Bible. If you are unfamiliar with the story, it is worth a read. Basically Ananias and Sapphira conspire to lie to the Apostles about how much they made when they sold a piece of property, and they end up dead. Secondly we have Jesus' words found in Matthew 12:31-32 NKJV: "Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. [32] Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come."
Let me say this clearly, these are not the same things as what I feel the Lord is addressing through this dream. Thinking back on the dream a few things that lead me to believe that I was not dealing with the serious issues listed above. First, I didn't get any impression that the Holy Spirit was mad, angry, upset or warning her, rather that He was trying to set her free. Second, going with the first, was the absolute gentleness that He asked me to show in bringing up the issue. As I reflect back on the dream, it was very peaceful, and the response of the woman was one of conviction and repentance. In my limited experience, that is exactly how the Holy Spirit works, and what He is after, conviction and repentance. He doesn't require a big show, or yelling or people doing anything else, He is dealing with people's hearts and spirits, and desires to set people free, to heal them, to see them respond in ways that will encourage them forward.
So, what is the purpose of the dream? I believe the Holy Spirit is asking me, and any who would read this, to reflect on our lives and on our requests of Him in prayer to see if we are being truly honest. As I was reflecting on this dream, after waking, I felt like the Lord gave me the following example that resembles the dream - where someone is continually asking for prayer for healing, when one is ignoring what one already knows they are supposed to do, as directed by the Lord. Here is a fictitious example similar to the one used in the dream. A person has a bad neck and is constantly seeking prayer for the bad neck. However, the Lord has told them they need to change their heart and mind and forgive something and someone in their past, and that the two things are tied together - the pain in their neck and the unforgiveness in their heart. However, this person refuses to deal with the unforgiveness, instead just asking for physical healing of their sore neck.
The theme of the above example could quite possibly be applied to many different areas in our lives. I find that in some problem areas that I know of in my own life, that it has taken me several years to come to the place of humbly and honestly admitting my issue to the Lord. He is ever gentle, and yet ever persistent. He doesn't want me living in denial, in pain, or in sin, and desires to set me free from all of that. Sometimes, His word of diagnosis is a complete surprise to me, other times, I have heard Him speak it many times, but I just don't want to change. Most of the time, I do want to change and try my best to follow His direction, because I know that He loves me and desires my health, growth and maturation.
Let me give you an example from my life. A few years ago I was reflecting one morning on a recent experience I had with some friends, where one of the couple was very judgmental about their spouse, even critical. I was thinking how difficult that must be to live with, and suddenly I heard the Lord say to me, "You do the exact same thing!" Immediately thoughts in my mind, attitudes in my heart, and words I had spoken came back to my mind, and I knew the Lord was right! I was immediately convicted and chose to embrace change as much as I could, and I went to my honey and asked forgiveness for the things the Lord had shown me. The Lord didn't hit me over the head with this diagnosis, nor did He threaten me, He just showed me my heart, taking off my selfish blinders, and I was absolutely convicted. In this case my response was pretty instantaneous, but had I been of a certain mind, I could have ignored His prodding, and probably had been ignoring it for years. Ugh!
I believe the Lord's point in all of this, is that He is for me, and for each of us. He desires to set us free from that which binds, that which holds us back, and that which wounds us, and sometimes that which does all this is our own selfish, prideful self. He desires us to be completely honest with Him, and in doing so, He will be able to help us most effectively, for one thing the Lord does honor is our free will! Going back to the fictitious example, if I need healing in my neck, but its caused by unforgiveness, the Lord isn't going to step in and force me to forgive the other person, it is always my choice. He also, probably isn't going to heal my neck, because that's not going to really help me or heal me.
Anyway, if this resonates with your heart, please receive this all in love, for I believe and know that is the Lord's primary motivation towards me and towards you.
May the Lord deal with us gently, in love! May His word and love set us free from all that wounds us, and holds us back.
Amen!
Sam
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