Friday, September 21, 2007

in your dreams . . .


An interesting dream I had a few years back:

In my dream, I was traveling with a small group of people and we happened upon a very ancient building. It resembled a castle, constructed from huge, hand-cut stones, without windows. The dark, wooden doors were massive, yet surprisingly easy to open. As we entered the building, we were dazzled by the soft, white light that seemed to emanate from the walls themselves. It took a few moments for our eyes to adjust, but then we began to take in all that was happening around us.

The spacious room itself was purest white--from the floors to the walls to the ceiling. No one gave us any instructions, but we instinctively removed our shoes--this was surely holy ground! The room's interior appeared to be covered by the softest kid leather. The entire surface was spotless--but I noticed tiny holes, pinpricks, really, perforating the leather.

My little band huddle together, just gazing about in wonder. There were small clusters of people through the room, all barefoot and clothed in white. They appeared to be lost in worship or praying with each other. There were no pews or chairs, but I noticed an altar that ran along the front of the auditorium, complete with kneeling benches. Several people knelt at the altar, some softly weeping, others passionately interceding for whatever burdens the Lord had put on their hearts. (Interestingly, the one person in the dream I recognized was at the altar--my editor from the newspaper I worked for at the time. He's a bit of a skeptic, and I could see him taking it all in, with a slight smile on his face).

Beyond the altar, I saw a worship team. But they weren't facing the "congregation," leading the people in a typical worship service. They were simply worshiping Jesus, lifting up their hearts, their voices, their skills in whole-hearted devotion to Him. Their eyes were focused on the "things above".

Throughout the building, little flocks of worshipers joined in the singing. But they weren't watching the worship team. Their eyes were focused completely on Him.

The music itself proved the most amazing aspect of my dream. The strains of praise and worship seemed to emanate from the building itself--The pinpricks I had noticed earlier were actually part of some kind of incredible (supernatural?) surround-sound system. The voices of the worship team were magnified and amplified throughout the room--I could have sworn I heard a heavenly choir in the background.

My little group joined in, timidly at first, but growing in confidence as His spirit gave us the words and melodies to the new, but oddly familiar, songs.

I awoke, still basking in the glory of it all. I felt like I'd witnessed the Bride of Christ, in all her spotless glory.

But was it a picture of what will be in Heaven . . . or how He desires it to be right here and now?