Tuesday, March 17, 2015
Have you ever had a disturbing dream that is so real that when you wake up you’re still upset as though it actually happened, and have you ever wondered why things that are generally far-fetched seem like a normal, every day occurrence during your dream? I had such a dream early Saturday morning. If you’re wondering whats so unusual about that, its because I seldom have dreams and when I do, I only remember bits and pieces. The last complete dream I can recall was the night before 9/11. In that one, I remember sharing it very early the following morning with a couple of fellow gym members. In that dream, I was in a large ballroom where people were having a carefree time and I was frantically trying to get their attention, but with no success whatsoever, to the fact that our country was in danger. I left the place in despair because everyone ignored me. Later that morning, my wife called me to the kitchen to come see the TV news reports about New York’s Twin Towers.
This dream of a few days ago concerned missing out on a Wednesday Night service, something we very rarely do. In fact, you can probably count in one hand the times we have been absent from any church service in the last 40 years for a reason other than being sick in bed or on an out of town vacation. My dream consisted of a series of comedy caper type events such as, among other things, the car not being big enough to take all who were going and the rest of us waiting until it would come for us too. The reason the car was so small is because it was one I had over twenty years ago, one we affectionately called “the green bomb.” In the dream, I even recall shedding a tear or two when I thought of how well that secondary little car served our family and the many times it got us out of jams throughout the years. I’ve heard we all dream about things that are important to us and that may be true because, as you can see, “church” probably characterizes my life. In fact, even after I realized that it was only a bad dream and we didn’t miss any service, I was still upset an hour after I was up.
I suspect some of you may not understand why “church” is so important to me. I don’t fully understand it myself; all I can tell you is that on the day that Christ came into my life, I fell completely in love with Him and everything else associated with Him, church included. I can relate to David’s sentiments and can joyfully say, like he did: I was glad when they said unto me, “let us go into the house of the lord.” (Ps. 122:1) and “Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.” (Ps. 84:10) I know that God is everywhere but I choose to believe that His presence is much sweeter and stronger in “church” than in any other place. I realize not everybody is in love with church; I just wish they were.
Memory verse for the week: (Hebrews 10:25) “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another- -and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”
