COFFEE TALK WITH GOD — I had a dream. What did it mean?

Published 6:00 am Friday, September 20, 2019

I had a dream. I don’t always dream and when I do, and remember them, I ask the Lord for an interpretation. “What are you trying to teach me, Lord?” First, I must write what I remember.

This is the dream of a bride and groom — two in love — with who? The idea of love? Or each other? Or themselves? Or another? There cannot be a wedding until they each decide — “This is My Beloved, and He is mine.”

In my dream, I was the coordinator, or someone respected and trusted to keep the bride happy and concealed away from the groom, until I caught the groom kissing another, a former girlfriend. But she was not the only one he kissed that day. She was one he returned to, believing she was what he really wanted, not the woman waiting in the wedding dress. He was confused.

So was the bride. She also had her doubts, but was willing to overlook the adulterous tendencies of her groom — she believed, in time, he would love only her.

The formerly scorned woman, threw herself one-too-many times at the groom and I reared up with righteous indignation and said, “Enough! You have to choose.” First, to the groom who ran from the jilted lover and began kissing others in the crowd of onlookers, while his bride watched.

Then I challenged the bride, “Is this what you want? Unfaithfulness before your vows to say ‘I do?’ ”

I left them in that quandary as I awoke at 5:10 a.m.

This might seem insignificant as dreams go — but you would have to know I came to realize the bride is the Body of Christ. The groom she thought she wanted to marry is her Beloved. He is the Song of Solomon, the Lion of Judah, the Lamb of God, her Defender, her King, her lover and friend, a sacred truth. He is worthy of all praise and adoration. He is her provider, her shield and defender, but he an imposter. The groom should be One with her — mind, body and soul, forever. They will become One, if He is the right one.

Is forgiveness the same as trust? Is the sanctity of marriage not worth the sacrifice? How have we gotten so far from God’s divine plan for marriage?

I pondered this in the wee morning hours Sept. 18, 2019. Selah.

The King’s invitations have been sent out, the first guests requested said, “No.” They were too busy, had too many excuses. The feast was prepared, someone would come. Some did. Some tried to sneak in without accepting the invitation. They were not allowed to stay. This parable has always struck me, bringing me back again and again to consider its meaning. I’ve lived it with invitations of my own for various functions and things throughout the years — some invitees I fully expected to come. They didn’t. Others were a second thought. They were honored and I knew they were really the ones that should have come. I was the one blessed for having their company.

One Halloween, which I no longer “celebrate” by the way, I dressed for a church “Trunk or Treat” in a hideous white dress with all these mixed colored and fabric shoulder pads pinned to the skirt. They each had a word printed on them — sins, bad habits and seemingly innocent things. I wrote a scroll with scriptures about the Bride of Christ and walked among the other cars with my bag of candy. I’m not sure if anyone, except a female pastor, really understood the symbolism. But they appreciated the ugliness I represented. Of all my years of costuming for Oct. 31, the day before All Saints Day, this was my favorite outfit. It was ugly.

Perhaps these other pieces of my past paint a better picture of why I saw this dream as significant, meaningful. I didn’t capture all the nuances of details from the dream. Instead, as I remembered and wrote, I listened to what God wanted to say about love — the Bride and the Groom. The wedding is ready to begin, but I’m not sure that either is ready for the honeymoon, much less the marriage. Search the scriptures for yourself and see what God has to say about husbands, wives, marriage and love. It’s really quite amazing.

Vicky Branton is the Teche Life editor at The Daily Iberian.