“Lord, You have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure.  the boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely i have a delightful inheritance.  i will praise the Lord Who counsels me; even at night my heart instructs me.”   Psalm 16

i had the strangest dream last night.  tim and I were at home, hosting a celebration of some kind.  the house was full of adults and children.  i was in the kitchen, looking for something when i noticed these tiny electric grills on the counter, covered with drippy bacon grease.  a slimy mess for sure.

shaking my head in disgust, frustrated that someone didn’t clean up their own stuff,  i decided right then and there i didn’t want that mess in my kitchen.  as i began to push the grills around and wipe the grease, i accidently flipped on a switch.  before I knew it, the grease began to smoke, on the verge of sparking up.  i panicked, yelling frantically for tim.  the kitchen was about to go up in flames.

end of dream.

waking up, i immediately recounted the dream to my husband.  mind you, i do realize that sometimes dreams are the result of eating junk food at midnight. but sometimes they mean something.  throughout scripture God spoke to His people in dreams, and on occasion God speaks to me this way.

so i asked the Lord to give me ears to hear the message of the dream.  and this is what He said…

“in your dream, you were cleaning up a mess that wasn’t yours.  you didn’t create it, no one asked you for help, and I certainly didn’t call your name to step into it.  you decided that the situation was unattractive, uncomfortable, and unacceptable.  furthermore, you assumed you knew the way to clean it up.  in the process, you almost burned down your house and the people in it.

“you are Mine.  I own you.  you are My sheep, called to listen to My voice and follow Me.  when I call you to step out of your own yard and join Me in another yard, you should obey.  however, unless you hear My voice calling you into that yard, you should stay where you are.  to venture out without My covering and direction causes risk to yourself and to those around you.  physical risk, emotional risk, relational risk, spiritual risk.”

sting.

sting.

sting.

how many times have i trespassed into someone else’s “yard” without hearing the Shepherd’s voice call me there?  how often have i observed someone else struggling through their “stuff,” and because of my own discomfort i stepped into a situation in which i had no business?  and how many times (countless) have i offered  unsolicited counsel, opinion, advice?  spoken words that cannot be taken back?  made the mess even bigger because of my intrusion?

i am thankful to God, Who continues to teach me.  with grace beyond measure, unlimited patience, and overwhelming love, He holds onto me and allows me to experience His mercy, “new every morning.”

and i am learning to wait.  to wait for His voice.  His direction.  not unlike waiting for the traffic signal to change.  proverbs 21 says, “he who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity.”  i am asking God to give me ears to hear His voice, louder than all the other voices that want to speak over me.  honestly, to make me deaf to every  voice but His.  and to teach me to stay in my own yard.

God forbid i make the matter worse.

God forbid i put others at risk.

God forbid i burn my own house down.