Day 32: Dreams

Thank you, God, for dreams.

Today, I am thankful to God for dreams.

I’m not talking about the kind of dreams we usually mean—goals, intentions, hopes for the future. Although I’m grateful for those too. But today, I’m giving thanks for the sleepy-time dreams—the strange, funny, sometimes terrifying, sometimes beautiful stories that unfold behind our eyelids while we sleep.

Some of these journal entries have captured the odd and bizarre things we experience or feel emotionally connected to, and this is one of them. Isn’t it amazing that we dream at all? Sure, we could research why we dream—maybe it’s a psychological response to something we’re hoping for or anxious about. Maybe it’s just our brains firing off randomness. Maybe it’s a vision (though I’m not sure I’ve had one of those). Or maybe… we just had too much chocolate before bed. Whatever the reason, dreaming is still part of God’s wild, wonderful creation.

I think of all the dreams shared in Scripture—from Joseph to Paul, and perhaps even the book of Revelation. Could our dreams be like those? Maybe. I just wish I had a Joseph to help translate the weird stuff that runs through my head at 3 a.m. I’m not saying we’re all having divine visions, but come on—dreams are fun, and definitely weird. For that reason, even if I had a Joseph, I’m probably not sharing all of my dreams.

One of the things I find most fascinating is how I can know that I’m dreaming, want to remember it, and then—poof!—it’s gone as soon as I wake up. Or how I can wake up mid-dream, drift back to sleep, and somehow pick up right where I left off. (Sometimes—hopefully—it’s a good one. It’s a little sad when I lose a really good dream.) And then there are those moments when I have to sit and really think: “Was that a dream, or did that actually happen?”

Yet, there are still times when I do remember my dream when I wake up and can share it with others. Then there are moments where it feels like I dreamed for three hours, only to realize I was asleep for five minutes.

And believe it or not, I even kind of like bad dreams—mostly because I’ve realized I have a little bit of control over them. I’ve found that not everyone in my family can do that, which makes me appreciate it even more.

Why am I writing all this? Honestly, because it entertains me. And because, God, You are so wonderfully creative. It’s true that we are wonderfully made—but I think it’s even better that we’re also wonderfully quirky.

Have you ever thought about being thankful for dreams? Or is there some other strange thing that humans do that makes you smile when you realize: “God created that in us”?