Jacob's Dream

In the story of Jacob's Ladder, Jacob has this dream. We've all had dreams, right? Have some of yours been as wacky as Jacob's? Sure they have. Can you remember any of your dreams? I mean, right now, do you remember any particular dreams? I can remember a couple, I guess. The ones I can remember are not necessarily the ones that woke me up or were the most beautiful. I remember, and I submit that you remember, the ones that held meaning for you. Jacob remembered this one.

In the story, he sees a truth so powerful and beautiful in his dream that he remembers it and makes it part of the foundation of his destiny, his story, his legacy, and thus part of the foundation of his tribe.

Jacob sees that the angels are attending to work here among us. He understands that the angels coming and going means that God is paying attention to us. That is the context: God's ongoing involvement with creation and history. When the voice of the Lord tells Jacob that he is rooted in the ongoing provision of God for a people and that he himself will create a family that will bless all the nations, Jacob accepts the promise God makes to him.

Understand that this revelation to Jacob is revealed to Jacob in particular and rendered in images and messages that are uniquely powerful to Jacob. While his experience is illuminating, it is his, not yours.

That makes sense, doesn't it? Each of us is unique and that which touches us deeply and convinces us and changes us will match our uniqueness.

So what is yours? Where have you felt the presence of God, the goodness of creation, the connectedness of all people - all things, or the thrill of the source of life coursing through your veins, your imagination, your self? ...and I have a follow-up. Now that you claim that experience, how does it affect your life this day?