Dream Come True

November 2013 It had been about four years since my original vision of having a place for people to gather together to pray, praise, and share. Then the week before Thanksgiving of 2013, I had a dream:

I dreamed I found a lot of money on the ground—stacks of bills, too much to count. I thought to myself, “Count it so you can return it to the owner.” The whole dream was me looking for a place to count it so I could find the owner, but I couldn’t find a private spot or an available room. I never did count it, I just carried it around.

A few days later, a group of friends came over to gather and pray. In the evening light of the patio, we talked of what God was doing in our lives. I remembered my dream and shared it. Believing that dreams are often significant, we talked about what it could mean. My friend Ron said that I couldn’t count it because it was “unlimited”, like God’s resources are unlimited. Another friend said “I think the money is for you.”  Because I was trying to find who the money belonged to, I hadn’t thought of it that way. It was an extraordinary idea.

I had a second dream in December. Here's the gist: We were in line for food. There was a container of water with a spigot low to the ground. A man before me got water, but when it was my turn, I opened the spigot and couldn't turn it off. It just kept running, flooding the ground. Embarrassed that I couldn't shut it off, that same man shut if off for me. As we were going through the line getting food I couldn't fill my plate because of interruptions: one person asked me about a salad: was it good, what was it, etc. I tasted and said "yes, it's good". Someone else yelled, "Do you have strong thread?" I said, "You find the thread and I'll fix whatever you have to fix." She showed me a very worn paper bag that was torn across the fold. I said, "It won't hold, it will rip." Someone else told me about a disturbing event and I said, "Don't worry--I (or we) just parted the Red Sea", referring to the water overflowing from the spigot.

I didn't know the meaning of this dream at the time, but looking back now, as I write this, the idea seems to be "overflow, filling up, capability, accomplishment".

2014 About a year later, unexpected events happened. Our family ranch was sold and I received

my share. Soon after, another unexpected blessing: I began receiving royalties from mineral rights we owned—resources that had lain dormant for years. I remembered the dream. Was there a connection, or was it just coincidence? As a person of faith, I chose the former. Was it limitless? Not by any means, but God’s resources are limitless, his timing perfect.

My surprise and gratitude overflowed. Now I could continue to invest in my vision of a prayer garden. Eventually, I would add drip irrigation and low-voltage landscape lighting, the two things I thought were out of reach that day of brainstorming not so long ago.

The Tale Doesn't End Here

This concludes the three part chronological Tale of a Prayer Garden:

1-Prologue, 2-Stepping Out, and 3-Faith and Provision.

These events happened many years ago, but they are written in my journal and in my memory. It was exhilarating and inspiring to see God clearly working in my life, helping me to bring a vision to reality.

There is much more to tell, but it's impossible to record it all chronologically. The other parts of this tale will cover the continued creation of the prayer garden over the next several years, and continuing. Because a garden is never really finished.