Then I dreamed....

"Then I dreamed..." (Genesis 28:12).

About four months after Chuck died I wrote a booklet titled Grief. Two years later I received a letter from a publisher accepting it and saying they felt it would help many grieving people. What I remember about the afternoon I received the letter was a dream. I never took naps then; I worked part-time and was very active. But that afternoon our precious God put me to sleep and gave me a gift. I want to share this dream, for it convinced me that God does indeed communicate with us through visions.

In this astonishing daydream I was in a room that was totally and purely white. It was as if I was compassed about with clouds but yet it was clearly a room. There were no windows or doors but I didn't feel enclosed or restricted in any way. I wasn't there long when Chuck came through the cloud. He was so beautiful! I thought him to be about 33 (a figure I wondered about later, because he died just before his 20th birthday), tall which he was in life, and he had long reddish hair, and a beard and mustache, which he never sported in life. But what amazed me was his serenity. He smiled at me and then turned and went back through the cloud. No words were exchanged. I awoke immediately.

I felt overwhelmed! What a gift from our beloved God, I thought. The peace I felt at that moment must be the peace which Jesus spoke of to His disciples: "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you..." (John 14:27.) That dream was years ago and yet it is as if it happened yesterday. In fact, it was just yesterday that I finally shared the dream with a friend and I had to admit that I'm not sure if it was Chuck (who at the time I truly thought it was) or if it was Jesus Himself who I saw.

As the years passed and Grief went into a world-wide ministry, I now believe it was Christ Himself who smiled at me and wordlessly whispered to me not to grieve anymore. He would now take it from here. I had done what He wanted me to and the rest was up to Him. Halford E. Luccock wrote, "A man's life may have a dull setting...but if it catches the reflection of the glory of God which is in the face of Jesus Christ, it becomes a burning and a shining light; is given as much meaning and dignity and joy that one of the supreme tragedies is to miss it." I know I caught His reflection that afternoon!

Precious Father, thank You for healing dreams that encourage us to have faith that all works together for good.