Fiery Trials
Hi everyone, I wanted to share an important vision I received last week, October 13, 2017. I hope this vision helps anyone who is going through a trial, or difficult time. This is the vision:
I am on top of a set of stairs. There is a young man sitting on the steps, about 8 or so steps from the top. He faces away from me so I see only his back.
Next, I see a dancer standing in front of a window facing the outside. I see only her torso and legs. She is dressed in a tutu, ballet shoes and leotard.
Next, I see a shoe with laces. One end of the shoelace is stuck under the foot. The person pulls on the lace to remove it from underneath the foot, so that he can finish tying his laces.
I didn’t get to this vision, right away, for it is now almost a week later, and I just received the meaning last night. This is what I believe the vision means:
The man is sitting motionless. He is overwhelmed, depressed. He is sitting on the eighth step from the top. The Biblical meaning of eight is “new beginnings.” He does not see the future with hope as with a new beginning or a fresh start. For some reason he looks towards his future with uncertainty and dread.. The stairs are very shallow and very steep. Should he choose to stand, he needs to take care not to fall. I am at the top looking down at him. As I was pondering the vision, my thoughts went back to a dream God had given me almost 20 years ago.
The vision (1997)
I was in a car with my daughter. We were at an intersection in NYC. There was tremendous flooding in the area. Waves were pounding the buildings. A traffic light suspended across the intersection was rocking back and forth in the wind. The water soon covered the hood of the car, so Haley and I were forced to leave the car and find a place of safety. I found myself in front of a six foot high wall of dirt and rocks. I interlaced my fingers to give her a boost up. Suddenly, I saw a tall man at the top of the wall. Without saying a word, he reached down and grabbed her, pulling her up. Then he reached down with one arm and pulled me up. I looked into his face, and I asked him, “Where can we go to higher ground?” He told me, “You are where you are supposed to be.” I knew that the man in the dream was an angel, and that he was sent by the Lord to let me know that “I was where I was supposed to be.”
In the current vision, when I saw the man sitting on the steps, I thought to myself, perhaps I could reach down and help him up, just as the angel had lifted me up. I could not physically lift him up, but I could certainly lift him up in prayer!
The ballet dancer was standing in front of a window in a brick building. My view is from just outside the window. As I asked God about this portion of the vision, I believed that God dropped into my spirit, the word, ”preparation.” In ballet, the term “prepare or preparation,” refers to a movement, like a plié or body position that prepares the dancer for the next movement, like a turn or an arabesque. Much like a squat prepares one for a lift. So this part of the vision shows the dancer in preparation for the next step. God helps to prepares us for the next step or stage in our walk with him. But it is also something we do, to prepare ourselves as we wait for the Lord.
The third part of the vision, shows the shoestring stuck under the shoe. The person has to pull the string out from under the shoe in order to lace it up. The lace that was stuck, is only a small hindrance, certainly not something difficult to accomplish. But none the less, one has to pull the lace out in order to get the shoe tied. The Lord may be pointing out the necessity of taking care of small matters.
Now when I place the three pieces of the vision together, I can see one definite message.
The man in the vision represents someone I have been praying for, for sometime now. He has been going through a painful divorce, that he never wanted. The divorce was just finalized the day before this vision. I know that he feels that he has lost everything, his wife, his home, his normal life with his children. He looks ahead to what he feels will be bleak future.
The word “preparation,” is a term of encouragement. In the story of Job, Job is depicted as a man undergoing great sorrow at the loss of his children, all his wealth and and even loss of his health. Yet his heart remained faithful to God. He said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked will I depart.” Job 1:21 Job said, “Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” Job 2:10
His wife did not have the same faith or character as Job, but was more like the average person who under similar circumstances, reacts in anger towards God. She said to Job, “Curse God and die!” Job 2:9
God does not want us to react as people without hope. God is painting a picture of hope in the word “Preparation.” We are to get ready, to prepare for God’s blessing. The man was sitting on the 8th step from the top. God is showing us “new beginnings.” This is an opportunity to see the hand of God bringing restoration and healing.
The shoe string represents the small matter or hindrance to receiving the Lord’s blessing. It has to do with “taking every thought captive, and bringing it into the obedience of Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:5 It has to do with forgiveness. “If you do not forgive men when they sin against you, then your heavenly father will not forgive you, your sins.” Matthew 6:15
Let’s use this man as example. We can see that he is at a pivotal point in his life and needs to choose the path he is to take. To live a life of joy and contentment, it is necessary for him to take his negative thoughts captive. He has to forgive his wife. He has to forgive himself, and he has to not blame others for his marriage failing. He has to not blame God for his wife’s unchanged and hardened heart. To do otherwise, can lead to depression, fear and bondage.
This man has to pull out the shoelace from under his foot. “Take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. Matthew 7:3 He has to remove bitterness and wrong thinking. He cannot entertain depressive thoughts. He needs to not wallow in dark thoughts, but instead see that God has plans: "I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11
It may seem at the time a monumental task to separate from negative thoughts, but it is the necessary thing to do. That is what the shoestring represents. Something small, but unless these negative thoughts are not corralled, they can do great harm to the individual. God would choose a better outcome for this man. The Lord responds with blessings to a faithful heart.
“Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” James 4:7 This is not the time to make internal vows - vows that form chains. Vows like: “I will never love again,” or “I will never let anyone hurt me like that again.” “I will always love her,” or “I will never give up hope that she’ll come back.”
The devil loves it when we make these internal vows, because they can bind us up in chains, and hinder us from being all that God wants us to be. He wants us to walk in peace and contentment with Him. God is our lord - not the thoughts that come to lord it over us! God offers freedom and peace. The devil offers bondage with self punishing thoughts.
We must take our stand against the enemy. We need to be like Joseph who was mistreated over and over again, yet never denied God. His heart remained pure and faithful to God. We have a choice. We can take offense and become full of hatred and bitterness, or we can choose to forgive and remain true to the Lord.
God wants us to come through our fiery trials victoriously. “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13
“With God all things are possible.” Matthew 19:6
“If God be with us, who can be against us?” Romans 8:31
Everyone faces trials of all kinds. We have seen people lose all they had in hurricanes, fires, flooding, and earthquakes. People have lost loved ones to murder and disease. When we face these trials, we need to seek God, for his comfort, his provision and his presence. Remember that in order to have the healing and restoration that we all need, we need to guard our hearts by taking negative thoughts captive, and choosing to trust the Lord. “The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him.” Lamentations 3:25
Be blessed and walk in the Spirit of God!
