A dream of a mountain……

A dream of a mountain……

I have dreams, at times, that defy anything that could be attached to my imagination fixations, or fantasies.  Sometimes the dreams are so real I wonder if they are God’s special message or reminder to me.  Such was my dream last night.

In this dream I began doing some work at our camp and then said good-bye to the carpenters as they were departing. But somehow I  got into the back seat of a worker’s van, fell asleep and ended up at his home in Greensboro.

He did not know that I was in the van and he and I were both surprised to find out we had been in the same vehicle for over an hour. He lived in a huge trailer park—-but a very, very dilapidated and impoverished park; all the single wide trailer-homes were rusty and dented, placed at uneven angles and there was no apparent plan for roads or paths to get from one trailer to the next one.

But what astounded me was an enormous green field on the side of the mountain.  It was full of very small flowers, and the mountain was enormous—-seeming to touch the sky. Much higher than any mountain I’ve ever seen.  I could not get my eyes off the meadow that was placed in the middle of the side of the mountain and the thick forest that surrounded the meadow and ascended to the pinnacle of the mountain.

But then I noticed how happy the people were.

I worried about calling my home but forgot my iPhone and no one’s phone worked there and I was ashamed to ask anyone to drive me back.  I thought that it would be a nice place to live --- even if it was a rundown, dirty, rusty little trailer because of the view of that magical mountain and meadow!

As I was in that dream, it occurred to me that everyone was happy—-young and old. They were apparently living in poverty, but I’ve never seen happier folks. I asked how many people were there and someone mentioned it was a  “family” of 1600 people.  They all came together for meals each night with each one bringing something truly special, appetizing and unique.  I was astounded at just how good the food looked and how fancifully it had been prepared! 

There was also the music! It was live, but not loud or “twangy” or pretentious—-it was happy music—the sort you might hear in Latin America.  But of all that I experienced, it mainly was the enormous landscape of the mountain that seemed to take up half of the landscape. The flowers that kept changing colors and it truly took my breath away.  As I looked closer I realized that these iridescent flowers were actually of colors I had never seen before. I could not describe the hues except to say that it soothed my soul and satisfied all  my senses to gaze at them on that meadow.

The dream was, in my opinion,  about heaven…..I did not want to wake up.  Whereas I was concerned that my family and friends might be worrying about me while I was in this old trailer park in “Greensboro”, I was also anticipating how excited my boys would be when they came/I came home; I was in no hurry and had no worries about getting back to where I was taken from. 

Dreams of heaven not only offer us a glimpse  (“through a glass, darkly”) of how things will be one forever be, but also reminds us of what we really yearn for—-peace with each other (and ourselves?) and to be able to look upon His glory.  In the Bible mountains were used as symbols of God’s presence, power and holiness. In this dream, His glory was His mountain—-an enormous prominence that was covered with an immense forest—except for that huge meadow that extended half way up to the pinnacle and covered with those incredible lights. 

In terms of community, it was the laughter, the sweet music, the grand feast, the smiles and kindness that made me want to live there forever. Oh to have a place like this on the earth! After watching the first Presidential debate last night I pant for a place like that old trailer park all the more!