A Thread of Dreams

God has spoken to our family in many creative ways over the years. Little confirmations at just the right time, words of encouragement, even some prophetic words that totally came true and were such evidence of how we serve the Living God! He still speaks! Of course, everything spoken over us or to us has always been measured by the Word of God as to its validity. 

Dreams and visions.... they seem like such a mystery to many Western Christians. But to some of my Iranian friends and other Muslim background friends, dreams and visions are a normal way in which God has revealed Himself to them. Many had dreams of a "prophet" robed in bright white and they had such a peace in the dream, but didn't know who the prophet was. Then, at just the right time, God brought someone to tell them the Good News of Jesus and they realize...that was the man in their dreams! And they become followers of Christ. I hear stories from various mission fields about this all the time.

The summer before we traveled to China to get Libby Billy and I led worship at our local church. After the service a man came up to me that I did not know. He told me that as I sang he had a vision of me pregnant. He said I was fully pregnant and glowing. And he just felt that I should hear about this vision.  I did not think much about it at the time. We were close to getting Libby and I assumed the vision had to do with that somehow.

About a month later we led worship at a camp. At the end of the service another man approached me that I did not know. He basically shared with me the exact same vision. He felt sure that it was not about our adoption but about a physical pregnancy that was to come.

A little history here, before I go on with the story: Billy and I have never TRIED to get pregnant because of some genetic issues on my side of the family. But we have also never used birth control. It's always been on our hearts to leave that to the Lord and see what happens. We have not struggled with the desire for biological kids at any time. We have always had a heart for adoption and we've felt very complete and normal in that desire. It has been the most natural thing for us.

Obviously, after a second vision that was explained to me almost exactly the same way - FULLY PREGNANT and GLOWING - I figured there was something to this. I called my friend, Terry and shared the 2 visions with her. She said, "Oh, Cindy, I have to tell you something". And immediately I wondered what she was talking about! She went on to say that her husband, Larry, had a dream about me being pregnant back when they lived in Africa. But the Spirit had not released him to share the dream with us yet. So we would have to wait until he was ready before we could know the rest of the dream.

Several months later, we already had Libby, Larry decided to share the dream. He dreamed that I was FULLY PREGNANT and that in the dream a man was chasing me with a knife. This man wanted to cut the baby out of me, but Billy stepped in and shot the man dead. He said that the dream was more about Billy's role of protection in the spiritual realm than me being pregnant, but he remembered specifically that I was VERY pregnant in the dream.

Shortly after Larry shared that dream with us, the Lord put it on my heart to adopt from Ethiopia. I struggled with it a little only because I wondered if the purpose of the dreams and visions were to put the desire in our hearts to have biological children. But the way in which I felt called to adopt from Ethiopia was so real that I just knew I was to move forward with that. Of course, at that time we had only had Libby a few months and Billy was not open to adopting again just yet. So, unbeknownst to me, I had another year to pray over it all. 

On Mother's Day the next year (2007) I was holding Libby during worship and praying that God would help us do the right thing - which I was convinced was adopting from ET. A woman that I barely knew approached me in the middle of worship and said, "The Lord just gave me a vision of you VERY PREGNANT and GLOWING. I don't know if it is a biological child or an adopted child, but it's going to happen VERY SOON." 

You can only imagine at this point how stunned I was that God was continuing to give this vision to random, but divinely appointed, people in my life! For months I continued to pray and wonder what all this meant.

At the end of December 2007 the Lord finally put the desire in Billy's heart to adopt from ET and the journey began. I have wondered many times during this journey if those visions were for a third child - a biological child - or if the visions were about adoption. 

Today a friend of mine sent me a message through Facebook about a dream she had last night. In the dream I was BIG PREGNANT and GLOWING as we talked about Aria-Lu and parenting in general. She said that even though I was pregnant, she knew in the dream that the pregnancy was for Aria-Lu who we were adopting. The two were one. And it was about to happen AT ANY MINUTE!

I am sharing this primarily for my adoptive mommy friends - especially the ones who, like me, have never been physically pregnant. This adoption journey is the most real thing. I believe these visions and dreams have been for the purpose of confirming that in the spiritual realm adoption is a pregnancy. God plants the seed of desire in our hearts to adopt already knowing what child he has chosen for us. And from that point on we carry in us the child to be in a spiritual sense. In the spiritual realm we are pregnant and it is REAL! And we are GLOWING! 

It seems that the first two or three visions/dreams were about Libby as I was very near to receiving her. The rest have been for Aria-Lu - our sweet Lulu who is about to be revealed to us! I am in tears right now as I envision the beauty of this spiritual pregnancy. My heart and my emotions tell me it is real. But as I walk around shopping for Lulu other people, for the most part, can't see what I know is in me. So to have others who have been given a special glimpse into the spiritual reality of this pregnancy confirm such is very much a comfort and encouragement to me. I am not journeying to find Lulu. God has already found her for me and in the spiritual realm she is in me ready to burst forth! Praise God!

I hope this thread of dreams is an encouragement to you and to anyone who is struggling with the idea of adoption. Adoption is NOT unnatural. But is IS supernatural! And for those who sometimes grieve missing out on having a child physically within them, know that in the spiritual realm you have missed nothing at all!

Blessings,

Cindy