Dream
In my dream, I was running the 400m nationals. I saw my father, my mother and my one brother (whose name means lion) in the audience. I was running in lane 8, unenthusiastically referred to as the ‘blind lane’ because you can’t see the other competitors. You are running in front making it difficult to pace yourself against the other athletes.
As we got into the back straight there was an extremely strong wind from the front. It was so strong making it almost impossible to run. As I was pushing forward my legs was burning of fatigue. I wondered how the other athletes were coping and looked behind me to see how all of them were struggling to run against this strong wind. Some even got out of their lanes in a desperate attempt to make progress against this wind.
I knew I had to keep on running although it seemed impossible. As I got to the turn, I felt completely exhausted. Upon entering the front straight, the wind now behind me, I saw that the last 100m was packed with hurdles. Now I had to jump over these hurdles if I was going to finish this race.
Interpretation
Those who have set themselves to uncompromisingly uphold the truth of scripture and follow their resurrected Lord will now start experiencing extreme winds of resistance.
We are entering a phase of resistance followed by a phase of potential stumbling blocks in this great race of faith. First, we will experience fierce opposition against our faith, then the world will create situations on our way to try to get us to compromise our faith.
Take Courage
The Father (symbolised by my father) the Holy Spirit (symbolised by my mother) and the Lion of the tribe of Judah (symbolised by my brother) is watching over us and cheering us on.
Jesus as the lion is present to impart boldness and courage so that we can face what is ahead. In these winds the enemy will whisper in our ears: “You cannot do this, the resistance is too strong for you, give up…” But “…If God is for us, who can be against us (Rom 8:31 NKJV)?
The Forerunners
The forerunners are called to run in lane eight. Many have prophesied about the nameless faceless generation. Those who have previously flown under the radar and aren’t well known. They occupy lane 8 as it is given to the person with the slowest qualifying time.
Wisely they have prepared themselves and have saved their energy with the final race in mind. They are the ones who will run in front and blind: they will “…walk by faith, not by sight (2 Cor 5:7 NKJV).”.
They will break open new roads few have travelled before. They will set the pace for the rest to follow and they will be an example for the others of how to run in this new season.
A Warning!
There is also a stern warning to those who are tempted to get out of their lanes by adjusting the truth in their attempt to cope with this opposition.
In a natural race, you are disqualified if you don’t keep in your lane. But in this spiritual race, it will make you more likely to compromise your faith, stumble and fall further into the race.
Don’t Waste Opportunity to Prepare
The strong wind of resistance on the back straight will be used by God to build our faith muscles so that we will not compromise and fall over the obstacles in the front straight.
In the first straight, our faith will be vigorously opposed. In the last stretch, we will be actively persecuted. The former will be words of opposition. The latter will be actions of persecution.
We will be put in situations where we will have to choose between “peace and safety” (that is with the world) or to follow our LORD and suffer persecution.
Harvest?
Although the last stretch of the race is going to be riddled with potential stumbling blocks the wind will now be behind us. The wind of opposition will turn into a wind of support to propel us forward. In this time, many who have opposed us will now join us.
Finish Strong!
“My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing (James 1:2-4 NKJV).”
“…being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ (Phil 1:6 NKJV).”
“Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus (Phil 3:13-14 NKJV).”
Hi Charmaine. Good message. Thanks for sharing it. Here’s a similar dream I had about 4 years ago:
I dreamed I was with a friend, a man about my age in his fifties. He had a daughter in her twenties who was an athlete, a long distance runner. I said to my friend that I knew about long distance running; that I had run a long race one time – fifty kilometers (thirty miles). He replied that his daughter did that every day, twice a day which humbled me. We were standing in the drive outside his home and to my delight she came out to do her usual run. She brought three other friends, young women, with her who she was training. One of them looked in very good shape, but his daughter looked phenomenal – incredibly strong and graceful. They warmed up briefly and they were off, with the one in training taking the lead for the first leg of the run followed by my friend’s daughter and the others in training behind her.
Just after they left I noticed another race course off to my right that lead into a wooded area. When the girls left on their training run I felt too old and weak to keep up with them but my friend’s daughter inspired me and so I decided to try this course even though it seemed just as daunting. I began running the first part with some effort but then not many strides into the race the course changed into a track on wooden stilts covered like a tunnel and just wide enough for one person. As I ran up to it I had to bend down low to fit in the tunnel and then use both my arms and legs to propel myself along. I struggled as I ran up to and entered the tunnel but after I was inside I found I was propelled along faster than I could run even though I was pulling myself forward with my arms and pushing with my legs on my hands and knees. Almost immediately I was going so fast I felt like I was flying. And I felt myself gaining strength, especially in my upper body. I got hungry soon from all the exertion but noticed that there was good food all along the tunnel within easy reach of my right hand, tasty meat and fruit pastries, and that I could get the food when I wanted and stop and eat it. And so after a while I stopped and ate a delicious meat pastry (in real life I’m vegetarian) in a beautiful park-like valley. While I ate my mind was still focused on getting back in the tunnel and continuing on.
Interpretation:
Everyone has his own race to run. I think the older man with the daughter is the Lord, and his athletic daughter is the well-trained branch of the church. She is training and inspiring others like myself. Notice the similarity in my dream to yours about the first part of the race – quite difficult getting and staying in position. Like you, I don’t have the advantage of seeing what is going on around me, I can only see ahead and just enough to the side to find high energy food. And I made the best progress on my knees. 🙂 Blessing. Mark