“Then Joseph had a dream,…Now he had still another dream,” (Genesis 37:5 & 9)
Dreams are truly strange. Most of the time they disappear from my memory almost as soon as my eyes open. I know I was dreaming, but I just can’t remember the dream. Much of the time my dreams represent a mixture of past memories. It’s as if my mind took the events and people of my recent and distant past and rearranged them with no order or structure. Sometimes my dreams jump from scene to scene…kind of disconnected…they have no meaning. One moment I am back in high school. The next scene finds me in places I’ve never been. Very seldom do my dreams have any sort of spiritual significance. If anything, they are far more likely to have their beginnings in undigested pizza rather than God. At least that is the way it tends to work for me.
Joseph, on the other hand, received not just one, but two dreams. And, both of his dreams were divine in nature. Both dreams spoke of events that were yet to come. There was a time when Joseph would be elevated above his family. And, regardless of the specific interpretation of the dream, it was clear to both his brothers and his father that the dreams meant only one thing. Joseph, who had lived his whole life as his father’s favorite, now seemed to be also God’s favorite.
Now, before you start sending me emails, let me just say, I am not against dreams. God can and does speak through dreams. But, I believe His Word should be the place where we really seek His voice. Too many people are looking for meaning in dreams, while the whole time His Word sits ignored and neglected gathering dust on the coffee table. Yes, God spoke through dreams in the Bible. He also spoke through a donkey. But that doesn’t mean we need to bring livestock into the pulpit on Sunday mornings. We should be a person who has built our life on His word. Because God will never say anything in a dream that does not reflect the teaching of His word…that would just not be consistent with His nature.
One thing we need to remember about Joseph’s dreams…the dreams did not warn Joseph about the difficult days that lay ahead of him. A God given dream does not exempt us from pain or sacrifice. The dreams that God give rarely come without a price. God does not give dreams so that we can parade around with an air of spiritual superiority. If anything, it should remind us of the importance of submission, sacrifice, and service. It is true that Joseph’s brothers would indeed bow down one day before him. But not before Joseph journeyed through almost 20 long years of injustice and suffering.
My point is just this. If God has given you a dream, don’t use it as a means to promote yourself. Instead, use it as a sign that you need to prepare yourself. That is what Joseph should have done. That is what we should do.
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