15 In a dream, in a vision of the night,
when deep sleep falls on men,
while they slumber on their beds,
16 then he opens the ears of men
and terrifies them with warnings,
17 that he may turn man aside from his deed
and conceal pride from a man;
18 he keeps back his soul from the pit,
his life from perishing by the sword. – Job 33:15-18
Dreaming
Not all dreams are created equal. Most mornings, when I awake, I don’t even remember my dreams from the prior night, but this morning was an exception. In my dream, my wife and I decided to sell our current home and property and move into the apartment we lived in for most of the first seven years of our marriage. It seems we were downsizing our home and were in need of a place to live while our new home was under construction.
Apparently I found our current situation so ironic (or amusing) that I thought I would share it with my mother (as if she wasn’t aware). But here the dream took a sad turn. In my sleep I recalled that I could not share our change of address with my mother because she is now deceased. And then I experienced one of those strange moments, when “inside” of my dream, I realized I was dreaming. I am sure you have experienced the same thing. Regardless, before my dream turned too somber my mind decided to “stop” the nonsense and I awoke.
Reality
Upon awaking I picked up my phone to check out the weather and then checked my e-mails. In my mail I saw the days headlines. It seems that in Seattle, WA, USA, we have a new country named CHAZ. This country, it appears, is run by a group of terrorists who are promoting peace. According to the media, it seems that these “civil” protesters are collecting “offerings” from the local businesses in exchange for protection (formerly known as extortion).
In addition, the leaders of this new country, for some strange reason, surrounded their “borders” with walls. Now there is a novel concept!! Further, if you want to enter their country you will be met by armed guards and vetted. Something that they once deemed discriminatory. Now, however, they deem it as necessary and vital to the existence of the land of CHAZ.
It seems the land of CHAZ was birthed out of the concept that all police officers are evil and must be done away with, yet CHAZ is patrolled by an armed force of it’s own. As to this thing called freedom of press and freedom of speech? Not in CHAZ. If you disagree with them you are beaten and expelled.
I love the new model of tolerance.
If this is reality, I want to go back to bed. This living nightmare pales any dream I’ve ever had in the slumber on my bed.
Divided House
So how did CHAZ just mysteriously appear in the heart of Seattle? According the the police chief, they surrendered the area to the “peaceful protesters” because they (the police) were tired of being pelted by objects and being called names.
Ok. So parents, if you can’t control your unruly children just give up and let them have their way. Let me know how that works for you!
We are a sick nation. There is no way around it. I’m not just talking about the virus that is dominating the news. Or the mental disease known as TDS (Trump Derangement Syndrome) that is dominating the media members. I’m talking about the sickness or our souls. I’m talking about the evil ideology that is responsible for the agenda of divide and conquer. As Christ warned us:
25 And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. (Mark 3:25)
What is the enemies end game? Control.
What is the enemies strategy? Chaos and confusion.
Chaos and confusion are the fertile soil on which evil takes root and grows.
Confusion/Chaos
As I drift between evening dreams and daytime nightmares, I become more and more confused. Not long ago if I wanted to peacefully protest my Constitutional Rights and protect my livelihood, I was called a selfish grandmother killer. Today, if I don’t agree with the violent riots I am deemed a bigoted racist. Oh the difference a day makes.
The people protesting from the safety of their cars were such a threat to public health that the Michigan lock down was threatened to be extended in retaliation for their obstinacy. Miraculously, when the Governor wanted to join the rioters in a demonstration, the lock down was immediately lifted, and apparently social distancing was no longer a concern. While most of us are asking for clarity, we are being told simply to acquiesce. Confused?
But we are not only confused about the present, we are also confused about the past. In the midst of the current uncertainties, we are witnessing an attempt at the destruction and re-writing of history. Monuments that have stood for the better part of two centuries are being defaced or destroyed. The American flag that has been the symbol of freedom home and abroad is now deemed the symbol of oppression. Instead of respecting it and those that have fought and died for all it represents, we are now told we must apologize for what it represents. As to our Founding Fathers, we are being taught that they were simply slave-holding racists pursuing wealth and prosperity.
Fathers forgive us.
Clarity
It is difficult to see clearly in the midst of all the smoke and mirrors, but that is exactly what the enemy wants. Threaten us with an unseen enemy and keep us in the dark. Like a bad dream, an invisible foe is hard for us to get out of our heads. While the enemy knows he can’t control what we think, he can control what we think about. The objective? Eventually, we don’t think for ourselves at all. Instead we become nothing more than glorified parrots (my wife doesn’t like when I use the word idiot) repeating the slogans of the day. From my perspective, we are well on our way to being fully hypnotized to the point of allowing others to do all of our thinking for us.
It is past time for Christians to awake. Just as the Bereans “validated” the teaching of Paul and Silas, we need to examine what is happening around us and what we are being told. Blind obedience is dangerous. We need to start asking the difficult questions. How do the events of the day line up with Scriptures? How many of my rights am I willing to sacrifice under the guise of safety? At what point, like so many in the Bible and church history, do we have to determine to disobey man and obey God?
Our country was founded by Godly men on Godly principals. I recognize that ultimately our citizenship is in Heaven, but even as sojourners here on earth, we have a responsibility to our fellow man. We must strive to put an end to the divided house. We must cut through the chaos and confusion. If we want unity, we must have clarity. If we are going to have clarity, it has to come from the Word of God.
Terrifying Warnings
As Elihu addresses Job in his suffering, he tells him that God may speak to us in our dreams and warn us to turn from our ways (deed) thus potentially saving us from a premature death. As Christians, the enemy cannot touch our souls, but I am afraid we may be witnessing the last days of our great country. Perhaps for too long, the church has been casually existing in a dream instead of living in reality.
Slowly but surely, we have surrendered our freedoms for safety and comfort. Naively, we have believed that each power grab has been done “for our best interest”. It may be fair to say that the death of this great nation, birthed on Christian principals, can be laid at the feet of Christians too often succumbed by chaos and confusion and thus complacent. Too often divided by disasters when we should have been unified.
God does not owe us the privilege of living in a free country, but in His mercy he has allowed us such a blessing. How long will the blessing last? How can we know? Perhaps the answer lies with us if we “turn from our deeds” (or lack thereof) and seek the face of God praying for restoration (2 Chron. 7:14).
Freedom
I am no prophet. I am merely clay enlivened by the breath of God. Like you, I often have meaningless dreams that leave me confused. But when I am awake, I pray that God will give me the clarity of vision to see through the enemies schemes. I may not be able to stop the chaos and confusion, but I can control what I think about. I can say no to the temptation to allow others to think on my behalf and suffer the consequences of my choices. Otherwise, will the same softness and complacency that enables me to surrender my political freedoms also enable me to sacrifice my spiritual freedoms?
It is one thing to burn the flag, deface the monuments and disgrace the veterans of our great nation, but to hold up the Son of God to contempt (Hebrews 6:6)? Whether political or spiritual, our freedom has never been free, but it has always been worth fighting for. Those of us that have it must fight as valiantly to retain it as did those that fought and died to make it available to us.
Like waves rolling in and beating the shore, the enemy will relentlessly try to pound us into submission. As the waters attempt to wash us away, we must cling to our Firm Foundation. In the midst of confusion, He alone can give us clarity. In times of division, He alone can bring unity. We simply need to decide, where we are going to stand, and more importantly, with whom.
5 For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. – Galatians 5:1