School of the Spirit: Dreams & Visions (Vol. 1)
School of the Spirit
Welcome to our second School of the Spirit: free, online seer courses intended to help usher in the sons of God into maturity in written, podcast, video, and live-meeting format.
In the Dreams & Visions school, we will teach practical guidance and spiritual, scriptural exercises to begin engaging the seer realms in dreams and visions. In Volume 1, our focus will be on interpretation. Understanding the messages of God is foundational to faithful stewardship as we mature to the full measure of the stature of Christ (Ephesians 4:13).
Hearing God Through Dreams
Scholars indicate more than one third of the Bible occurred through dreams and visions, with over half of God’s prophetic words spoken through them. Hebrews placed great importance on dreams and visions; so much so that the understanding and interpretation of symbols was commonplace, for they understood this is often how God communicated.
The interwovenness of dreams in Hebraic culture is evidenced by the immediate interpretation of Joseph’s brothers.
Dreams and visions are not only reserved for prophets like Joseph, but all flesh. In Peter’s sermon at Pentecost in Acts 2:17-18, Peter quotes Joel 2:28-29, saying:
Not only has God continued to speak in dreams throughout man’s time on earth, but He has done so in increasing measure. God even speaks to unbelievers in dreams, as we see with Abimelech (Genesis 20:3), Pharaoh (Genesis 41:1), Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 2:1), Pilate’s wife (Matthew 27:19), and more.
TIP: God uses dreams and visions to meet with us, establish covenants, and host significant events (Genesis 15).
Dreams as Divine Communication
God is always speaking; He speaks through His word (2 Timothy 3:16), nature (Romans 1:20), creation (Psalms 19:1), music (2 Chronicles 20:21), signs (Judges 6:36-40), other people (1 Peter 4:11), gentle inner whispers (1 Kings 19:9-12), donkeys (Numbers 22:28), and so much more.
Sadly, while we are all regularly being spoken to by God, many do not perceive the sound of His voice, as we have not yet trained our senses to recognize it. Hebrews 5:14 NLT reads, “Solid food is for those who are mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between right and wrong.”
While we don’t need to be mature to begin hearing God’s voice, we need to hear God’s voice to become mature.
In His grace, even when we’re not trying to hear His voice, God speaks to us through dreams and visions. These are often times where our flesh takes a back seat and the spirit man has an unobstructed opportunity to come forth. Many are familiar with John 10:27 ESV, which reads, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me”, and yet they cannot honestly say they hear God’s voice—understandably, this can be disheartening. When our personal experiences misalign with scripture, we must understand that scripture is the single arbiter of truth and does not change. Isaiah 40:8 ESV reads, “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.”
Christians often limit themselves to hearing God’s voice because their expectations are amiss. They expect clear words of knowledge, open visions while awake, or the audible voice of God. While God still speaks in all those ways, it is not as common as His use of dreams, which appeals directly to the spirit. We must be cautious not to limit God to our expectations of how He ought to act – He is an infinite Being.
For those of you who actively move in the Spirit, you will recognize that verbal communication is a low form of communication. For this reason, many of us have “knowings” in dreams – that is, we instinctively understand something to be true. We will expand on this in a later section. Likewise, many who travel to heaven testify that communication is often through these knowings – instant, expansive thought-to-thought transferences that far eclipse the audio/visual and are not bound by their finite constraints.
It is important that we understand this as it will lead to a greater appreciation and thankfulness when we see what the Lord is saying to us through dreams, and typically thereafter: visions. Too often, dreams are dismissed as an active imagination or too much pizza – this is a very dishonorable sentiment that we must repent of. Accepting that God is trying to nightly speak to us through dreams positions us to honour and value them, because we understand it’s His voice.
TIP: If possible, purchase a voice recorder. Pen and paper is not fast enough and the blue light of your phone’s screen will make returning to sleep difficult.
Dream Sources
Among Christian dream interpreters, it is typically accepted that there are three sources of dreams: God, the soul, and the enemy. We see this echoed by Tertullian in his book On the Soul. Tertullian was an early church father who lived between 155 and 240 A.D., referred to as “the father of Latin Christianity” and “the founder of Western theology”.
We’ll look at indicators which will help determine the source of any given dream. Particularly if you’re a beginner interpreter, you’ll oftentimes need to first interpret the dream before accurately discerning the source.
A common pitfall of Christian dreamers is dismissing the majority of one’s dreams as being soulish, discarding them and forgoing opportunities to cultivate interpretative skills. Not only can these dreams be hidden messages from God that must be decoded to correctly attribute and understand, but even soulish dreams can benefit from interpretation as they can expose ungodly desires and strongholds in our life, opening us up to examination which brings correction and ascension.
Three things that do not dictate the source of dreams are:
1) EMOTION
Successfully interpreting our own dreams requires we look at them both objectively and subjectively. At times, God will reveal things that are hard to digest – either because they are corrective in nature and that can be unpleasant, or because He’s providing us with revelation of things that are beyond our current comfort level. Instances like these require objectivity to be accurately interpreted. Simultaneously, we must ask ourselves how dream symbols relate to our personal life, as with few exceptions, the majority of dreams pertain to our own life and not the lives of others.
For instance, fear is not indicative of a dream being from the enemy – prophets all throughout the Bible were in terror as they beheld God and angels in dreams and visions (Daniel 8:17). Likewise, a dream that brings great pleasure can be from Satan, who disguises himself as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14).
2) NONSENSICALNESS
The seeming randomness of a dream does not qualify as grounds for dismissal. Dreams are first and foremost symbolic and the disconnectedness is part of the mystery to be unraveled, not something to be embarrassed of or looked down upon.
When the word of the Lord came to Amos, saying, “What do you see, Amos?”, Amos replied, “A basket full of ripe fruit.” (Amos 8:1). That’s random! Amos didn’t dismiss this seemingly random symbol, he engaged the Lord relationally by stating what he observed. The Lord then provided Amos with the interpretation, “Like this fruit, Israel is ripe for punishment! I will not delay their punishment again.”
Let’s stop labeling God dreams, or soul dreams that God wants to work through, as “pizza dreams”. It’s dishonouring and hinders spiritual development.
TIP: God tests and refines us in dreams. Psalm 17:3 TPT – For in a visitation of the night you inspected my heart and refined my soul in fire until nothing vile was found in me.
3) MUNDANE RELEVANCE
Let me paint a picture: You’ve spent four hours of your Saturday night cleaning the kitchen and baking artisan bread for the family; fatigued, you wind down for the night and fall asleep. You awake into a dream where you once again find yourself in the kitchen. You’ve removed the garbage, tidied up, washed your hands, and baked bread, removing it from the beeping oven and placing it on the table to serve your family, enthusiastically describing the bread’s taste, smell, and appearance. You awake from the dream exhausted, looking down at your voice recorder. You determine this was your soul processing the events of the day and go back to sleep.
This is what really happened: the Lord was speaking to you about your heavenly calling. The kitchen is a place of preparation; the garbage is the weights and unclean sin from your life that He wants you to remove (Hebrews 12:1); the tidying up is the order that comes from the removal of these chaotic things (Isaiah 57:20-21); the washing of your hands is the purification process that allows us to ascend the mountain of the Lord (Psalm 24:3-4); the bread is Jesus (John 6:35); the beeping oven is a call from the Lord to rise up (Isaiah 60:1); serving your family is serving the church (Ephesians 3:14-15); and your explanation of the various dimensions of the bread is revelatory teachings of the dimensions of Christ that are birthed from another dimension.
Thus, the Lord has you in a place of preparation where you are to remove every hindering weight and sin from your life as you undergo a purification process that will rise you into your heavenly destiny, which is to teach the church about Jesus from a place of experiential intimacy and revelatory encounter, allowing them to experientially “taste and see that the Lord is good” (Psalm 34:8). Not so boring after all!
TIP: Failure to heed the Lord’s directions in dreams may result in that dream recurring and preventing you from further revelation.
To determine the source of a dream, assume one of the three sources and ask yourself the corresponding questions. If it doesn’t fit into the assumed source, try another.
1) GOD
Does it align with scripture?
Everything in life, dreams and otherwise, must be filtered through the lens of truth, the Holy Bible. If it does not align, it is not truthful and must be rejected, regardless of emotional pull.
Does it align with the character of God?
There are many godly things which align with the character of God but are not explicitly stated in scripture. John 21:25 ESV reads, “Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.”
Sunday school and gold dust materializing on believers are two examples. Sunday school aligns with the character of God in that we know He wants children to come to Him (Mark 10:14) and to be trained up in righteousness (Proverbs 22:6).
Gold dust aligns with the character of God as it is symbolic of an ancient Jewish wedding custom, in which the groom gives the bride an object of high value, such as pure gold, to seal their covenant vows, thus entering into the betrothal period. This represents the period we are in as the Bride of Christ, awaiting our wedding day. Not only is the supernatural materialization of gold dust a gift from a Father who loves to give good gifts (Matthew 7:11), it is symbolic of something much deeper.
To discern such symbols, which can manifest in innumerable ways, we utilize the same interpretive framework used for dreams. As you learn to recognize and interpret symbols throughout your day, you’ll understand just how frequently God is speaking.
What is the fruit?
Speaking of true believers, Jesus says in Matthew 7:16, “You will recognize them by their fruits.” Likewise, the source of a dream can be determined by the fruit. Has the dream pointed you towards God? Has it increased your love or revelation of Him? Has it encouraged you to subdue the flesh and purge worldliness from your life? Some dreams are corrective in nature; others are simply love letters from your Beloved—look to the fruit.
TIP: God often speaks the same message through various dreams in the same night, as He did for Pharaoh (Genesis 41).
2) SOUL
Does it align with your soulish desires?
If the dream aligns with carnal desires, such as owning a fleet of exotic cars, it’s easier to discern as soulish. When the dream aligns with a seemingly righteous desire, it’s more complicated, as it may indeed be from the Lord. Psalm 37:4 ESV reads, “Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
Perhaps you’ve been pressing into the Lord and have desired a platform to share what He’s shown you. You awake ecstatic, having dreamed of delivering a powerful message to thousands of conference attendees, prophesying over them under the tangible anointing of the Lord as the atmosphere of heaven rains down.
It’s possible the dream was simply your soul processing your desire for a platform, when the Lord has not designated you one – now or perhaps ever. Many Christians believe they’re called to a platform as a pastor, prophet, or otherwise, when the Lord has simply called them to sit at His feet in the secret place. Besides, the former ought not be pursued without the latter.
It is also possible the Lord was showing you what’s to come. If you believe this is the case, examine if you’ve been living a life of delight in the Lord, one that is pleasing to Him and focused on Him. Seek the council of the Lord in the secret place, inquiring if the dream is indeed from Him, asking Him to confirm it. It’s okay to ask for confirmations, 2 Corinthians 13:1 reads, “Every matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.”
If you believe He’s saying yes, ask the Lord how you can partner with what He’s shown you. Many are given prophetic words and visions which do not come to pass because they have not partnered with it – meaning, they’ve assumed the word would come to pass irrespective of their decisions, and as a result failed to give themselves over to the Lord to see the manifestation of that prophecy.
Does it relate to something you’ve been thinking heavily upon?
If we think about something obsessively, it can create a pathway in our brain that can cause us to dream about it. If we are so consumed by anything that isn’t God, this needs to be repented of, for the scriptures charge us to love the Lord our God with all our mind (Matthew 22:37). The Greek word for “mind” is “dianoia”, which is more accurately translated “imagination”. Only God deserves our obsession, and when our focus shifts off Him it can open the door to ungodly dreams. Should this happen, use the exposure of this unhealthy obsession or desire to correct yourself and refocus on Him.
Does it agree with positions and patterns in your life?
Perhaps you’ve been sharply debating with a fellow believer over a doctrinal position you hold, something you engage in more often than beneficial. You dream you’re on a debate team, swiftly rebutting the opponent as you take victory after victory. You believe this to be a dream from God, affirming your doctrinal stance and means of debating.
In order to successfully interpret dreams, objectivity and self-awareness is required. In communion with Holy Spirit, ask if such a dream is simply reinforcing what you believe to be true, or if self-examination and judgement is required. In this instance, it would be clear to a third-party that this was either your soul processing an unhealthy pattern in your life, or God bringing correction to a loveless means of dividing His word.
Remember, always test dreams against the Bible, the character of God, and the fruit.
TIP: What you focus on prior to sleep may manifest in your dreams. Whereas TV can birth nightmares and perverse dreams, spiritual practices such as Bible-reading and worship birth life.
3) SATAN
Is it condemning?
Romans 8:1 ESV reads, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”, and Revelation 12:10 describes Satan as the accuser of the brethren. God brings correction in Fatherly love and discipline, humbling us that we might repent. He doesn’t humiliate us, make us feel worthless, or cause us to question if He really loves us. If you’re unclear if the dream is corrective or condemning, examine yourself before the Lord and ask Him to expose any impurities. Be still and watch for any passing impressions or images in your mind’s eye, which are two common ways the Lord speaks.
Even if the source of the dream is demonic and the condemnatory tone ought to be rejected, the issue in question may need to be repented of. Genesis 50:20 reads, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good.”
Is it obscene?
There is a teaching that sexual dreams are from God, symbolizing a union, intertwining, or otherwise. There is no biblical precedent for this, and rather we are instructed to flee from sexual immorality of all kinds (1 Corinthians 6:18), particularly as such imaginations carry a reality to them for which we will be judged (Matthew 5:27-28).
Likewise, if you find a dream to be grotesque or perverse in other ways, such as hyper violence, it is a good indicator it is not of God. If you find this is a pattern in your life, there is an open door to the demonic that needs to be shut. Examine your entertainment choices, as secular TV, film, music, and video games are notorious for causing this. If your children are having nightmares: evaluate the media they’re consuming. Pokemon, for example, are actual demons, and Harry Potter is legitimate witchcraft.
Note: God may speak to you through disturbing themes such as sex and violence if He deems it beneficial to convey the message. However, there is a sharp contrast in His delivery. I have had violent dreams in which I observed much killing but no bloodshed – it was as if God took R-rated visuals and adapted them for a PG-13 audience. Likewise, I’ve had the knowing of sexual things taking place without observing them – or seeing a covered, undetailed representation of it.
Does it point to something or someone other than God?
If the dream is elevating something or someone above God, it is not of God. The scriptures instruct us to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus (Hebrews 12:2). For example, if your heavenly assignment is to be in business, you are still instructed to habitually abide in Him as a yielded vessel in which He can work through—God never instructs us to take our focus off of Him, regardless of our callings or circumstances.
Satan can even use good, God-given things like family to deceive us. He can implant a dream in which you believe God is asking you to spend less time with Him and tend to the needs of your family more, even though (for illustration purposes) you already are. Many professing believers will find themselves sentenced to eternal torment because Satan has deceived them into elevating the things of God over God Himself, becoming guilty of unrepentant idolatry.
Furthermore, throughout scriptures we see the angelic point to God, never desiring praise for themselves. For those of you who have angelic encounters, you’ll recognize that their presence causes your desire to be with Jesus to increase. When I see angels, my first impulse is to ask them to take me to Jesus. If you encounter spiritual beings in dreams or otherwise, and you discern an air of boastfulness, a desire for attention, or a downplaying of the glorious person of Christ Jesus, you’re likely dealing with a demon disguised as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14).
A few months ago I awoke from a prophetic dream to hear an audible voice filling my bedroom, claiming to be Daniel. When I asked him, “which Daniel?”, the spirit replied, “The Daniel.” This subtle air of pride exposed the source of the spirit—I cursed him and he fled.
Is it dull, desaturated, or colourless?
While demonic dreams can be lifelike and even full of colour, a dull, desaturated, or colourless dream is often an indicator of a demonic origin. Satan isn’t creative; he’s a counterfeiter.
Is it a visitation?
Finally, some demonic dreams are not dreams at all, but are rather demonic visitations. Seeing a shadowy figure at the foot of one’s bed as they suffer sleep paralysis is a common example of this. If you find yourself in this situation, rebuke the evil spirit and consult the Lord as to why this happened. As you steward dreams faithfully, such inquiries will often be answered through dreams.
TIP: If there is sin in your life, the enemy can enter your dreams through open doors. At times, the enemy will try and get you to make spiritual agreements with him via contracts, the consumption of food or drink, or sexual acts. Repent!
Dreams About Others
The vast majority of dreams are about you—not others. The Lord wants to conform you to His image and help you realize the fullness of your heavenly destinies and assignments. For this reason, many dreams will pertain to working out issues with your heart and soul; God encouraging you throughout as He provides glimpses of who He’s called you to be.
When we hold precious the discipline of the Lord, heeding corrective dreams and growing into the full stature of Christ (Ephesians 4:13), God may begin entrusting us with revelation about where our brethren are struggling, that we might bear one another’s burdens, restoring transgressors in a spirit of gentleness (Galatians 6:2). When the log is removed from our own eyes, only then can we see clearly the speck in our brother’s.
Scripturally, we see it was often the king’s advisors (the Lord’s prophets), who would receive dreams relevant to the king they served. Likewise, God provides us dreams within our sphere of influence. If you’re continually dreaming about a rock star who you have no association with, it’s likely symbolic. At other times, albeit less frequently, it may be a call to intercede.
There are indicators which help determine if a dream is intended for another. Firstly, if the dream is observational in nature – that is, rather than taking an active role in the dream, you find yourself watching it play out like a film – it may be about someone or something else. Secondly, assuming you’ve acquired the skill of interpretation, have faithfully interpreted the dream, and it remains totally unrelated to you, seek the council of the Lord as to whether it is truly about someone or something else.
Those who faithfully steward dreams about themselves, accurately recognizing and obeying the voice of the Lord, will have eventually consecrated themselves unto the Lord. This not only positions an individual as a willing and pure vessel for the Lord to work through, but a friend who He can trust with His secrets. In this place, we will begin having more dreams about others, as well as prophetic and revelatory dreams, visions, translations, visitations, and many other types of heavenly encounters.
TIP: Faithfully stewarding dreams is a launching pad into the greater works of John 14:12.
Symbolism
Looking at dreams symbolically means not looking at them literally. While dreams can be literal, it is the overwhelming minority. Literal dreams tend to be prophetic in nature, even though prophetic dreams, like other dreams, are primarily symbolic.
One must exercise extreme caution in sharing or following counsel from dreams taken literally, particularly if it involves a major life decision. We will be held accountable for the counsel we give.
The exception is someone who has diligently cultivated their interpretative skills over innumerable dreams, has a pattern of dreaming literally, and possesses a verifiable history of consistent interpretive and prophetic accuracy.
Not too long ago, a woman reached out to me shaken as she received word from a prophetic friend about her marriage. The prophetic individual dreamed of this woman’s husband divorcing her, interpreted it literally and shared this. Despite good intentions, this prophetic person erred in two areas. Firstly, this individual took a symbolic dream literally; secondly, the context which provided the key to the interpretation was not considered. Around the time of this dream, this individual had made the decision to split from the local church. This dream was symbolic of this individual divorcing Christ’s bride, and was not a prophetic dream but a corrective one.
TIP: Training exercises excluded, avoid interpreting other’s dreams until your interpretive skills are consistently accurate, lest you provide unwise counsel that hurts others.
To accurately hear God through dreams, we must learn the language of symbolism. Proverbs 25:2 NKJV reads, “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter.”
Throughout the scriptures, we see the Lord use symbols personal to the dreamer to convey His message. Joseph was a lowly shepherd who was spoken to by God through images of sheaves of grain, whereas King Nebuchadnezzar observed a great statue made of gold, iron, and other materials. Likewise, Pharaoh's cupbearer dreamed of grapes from a vine and pharaoh’s baker dreamed of baskets of bread.
God is relational; He speaks a language specific to you in symbols you understand. While an owl may represent wisdom to you, it represents the occult to another. Thus, the best interpreter of your dreams is you. As you consider dream symbols, ask yourself what each symbol means to you, consulting the Holy Spirit as you go.
For this reason, dream dictionaries should be avoided. We must avoid secular dream dictionaries as we do not want to place ourselves under teachings inspired from the enemy. As for Christian dream dictionaries, they still fail to account for personal symbolism and hinder the relational aspect. However, a situation where a Christian dream dictionary may be beneficial is when a beginner interpreter is struggling to understand symbolism, in which case reading through examples may help establish that thought pattern. Once understood, the dictionary should be discarded.
TIP: Dream dictionaries do not consider personal symbols and remove the relational aspect of interpreting with Holy Spirit. Avoid them.
Biblically, we see two means of correctly interpreting dreams. Firstly, revelation from Holy Spirit, per Genesis 40:8 in which Joseph says, “Do not interpretations belong to God?”. Secondly, acquired skill, per Daniel 1:17 which reads, “As for these four youths, God gave them learning and skill in all literature and wisdom, and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams.”
When we cultivate our ability to interpret symbols in communion with Holy Spirit, we have successfully positioned ourselves to hear God’s voice.
To begin developing a thought-pattern conductive to understanding symbolism, let’s look at some recurring categories of symbols and potential meanings. While this will establish an interpretative framework to build from, we must allow for variances specific to our personal language with God.
PEOPLE
When those unfamiliar with interpretation dream of another individual, they default to attributing the message of the dream to that person. This is rarely the case, and the individual can rather represent a facet of the dreamer.
Let’s say you have a young friend named Amber and you dream of attending her funeral. Ask yourself, which character trait comes top of mind when you think of Amber? Busyness. Amber always has something to do and often misses her time with the Lord. In this dream, the Lord is showing you that He wants you to die to busyness, that you would spend more time with Him. Thus, Amber is present as a symbolic representation of a shared character trait.
Now, let’s say the Lord wanted to show you that Amber would suddenly pass away—He would likely provide you this revelation in an observational dream using symbols. One night, you drift off to sleep and find yourself observing a tree, a common biblical symbol for man, and the tree is adorned in vibrant, amber-coloured leaves in the bright of day. Suddenly, dark clouds overshadow the tree and its leaves wither away, leaving a charred, barren stump. If Amber doesn’t know the Lord, it’s time you fervently share the gospel with her, and if she does, perhaps the Lord is leading you to rebuke the spirit of death in her life by means of intercession.
In addition to character traits, individuals can also be present for their function, profession, role in your life, or other notable attributes. A man dreaming of his wife can be symbolic of Christ’s Bride, a woman dreaming of her dad can be symbolic of her Heavenly Father. Ask yourself, who does this person represent to me?
The language the Lord has developed with me places the importance on individuals’ namesakes. Throughout scriptures we see the functional and prophetic role that God places on names. In Hebraic culture, the name is inseparable from the character of the person.
The Lord often presents me with coded language hidden in names which act as keys to understanding. For example, if God wants to teach you about His grace, He may place someone named John in your dream, meaning “YHWH has been gracious”. Namesakes can provide needed context which click the various pieces of dreams together. While the first or last name is typically all you need, a first, middle, and last name strung together can at times read as coherent sentences.
TIP: The Lord is relational! Track symbol patterns to determine the unique language He develops with you.
Some time ago, I interpreted a dream for a woman in which former Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper was pursuing her, showering her with attention—this made her uncomfortable and she distanced herself. Decoding Stephen Harper’s name unlocked the meaning of the dream.
The name Stephen means “crown” and the associations here are Jesus’ crown of thorns and His kingship. Certain names can possess multiple meanings, Stephen also meaning “that which surrounds”, which is again referencing Jesus, per Psalm 145:18 and Psalm 32:7. Furthermore, Stephen was the first Christian to be martyred, paralleling Jesus’ crucifixion.
Harper means “harp player”, and a harp was used as an instrument of worship in the Bible. One primary dimension of Jesus’ life on earth was worship, and He is the mediator of our worship to God the Father (1 Timothy 2:5). In Romans 15:9, Paul writes this of Jesus, citing the book of Psalms, “Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles, and sing to your name.”
Finally, “prime minister” is another way of saying “high priest”, and Jesus is our eternal High Priest (Hebrews 4:14). Stephen Harper represents Jesus. While any one of these clues points to Jesus and the full measure of interpretation is not needed to discern this, the depth in which God speaks is uncanny, and layered confirmations like this act to affirm our interpretations.
As for the interpretation of the dream, the unraveling of this mystery unveiled there were intimacy issues with Jesus that needed to be worked out, and as a result of this revelation, healing could now be pursued.
TIP: The Lord instructs us during the night. Psalm 16:17 ESV – I bless the LORD who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me.
ANIMALS
When dreaming of an animal, ask yourself what that animal is known for. It could be a particular function, attribute, appearance, emotion, or otherwise.
Dreaming of a hawk can speak to eyesight, representing prophets and seers. Alternatively, an ox can represent labouring and serving. When looking to the scriptures we can discover deeper meanings of some symbols—here we discover an ox is the highest valued animal sacrifice and also pertains to one of the four living creatures.
When we look closer at the four living creatures, we discover each one represents a different facet of Christ.
The man is the gospel of Matthew, which speaks to Christ’s incarnation and humanity.
The lion is the gospel of Mark, which speaks to Christ’s power, authority, and majesty.
The ox is the gospel of Luke, which speaks to Christ’s servitude and sacrifice.
The eagle is the gospel of John, which speaks to Christ’s divinity and ascension to heaven.
In dreaming of an ox, God may be speaking to you of the need to die to self, living a life in service to the Lord and others.
TIP: As you progress through the seer realms, you will encounter spectacular and curious animals not of this world. Ask Holy Spirit what they represent.
PLACES & THINGS
Similar to animals, ask yourself what the place or thing is known for. Consider the function, attributes, and associations with the symbol in question.
Find yourself in the bathroom taking a shower? Ask yourself, what is the function of the bathroom and why do people take showers?
The bathroom is a place where we eliminate waste, clean up, and prepare for the day and night. A bathroom is also called a restroom. People shower to remove uncleanness and foul odour. Thus, per Hebrews 12:1, the Lord is showing you that He wants you to prepare by eliminating weights (waste) and sin (uncleanness), resting (abiding) in Him, that your life would be a fragrant offering before Him, ready to carry out His works.
TIP: God gives supernatural gifts in dreams. 1 Kings 3:5 ESV – At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night, and God said, “Ask what I shall give you.”
WORDPLAY
Look for puns, metaphors, similes, homonyms, metonymies, and other wordplay. Because dreams are primarily visual, think of it like a game of Pictionary—God is playful! (John 21:1–12)
A homonym is at least two words possessing the same spelling or pronunciation while meaning different things. A bat is both a nocturnal mammal and a sports instrument. A band is both a musical group and a ring. If God wants to teach you about “bearing fruit”, He may show you a bear eating an apple. If He’s telling you to watch your words, He may show you a wrist-watch with various words printed on it.
We see a Biblical example of this in Jeremiah 1:11 when the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying, “Jeremiah, what do you see?”, Jeremiah said, “I see an almond branch.” The Lord then said, “You have seen well, for I am watching over my word to perform it.” While the wordplay is lost in translation, the word for “almond branch” in the original Hebrew is “shaked”, and the word “shoked” means to work and focus attention on.
A metonymy is a figure of speech which replaces a word with something it is closely associated with. A suit represents a businessman, Hollywood represents the film industry, the crown represents royalty, and so forth. If God wants you to better understand Hebrews 4:12 ESV, which reads, “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword…”, He may show you a giant pen clashing with a sword of like-size; the pen breaking the sword in two. In this vision, the pen represents the written word of God, and the sword represents the enemy’s weapons of warfare against us.
If you see written words in dreams, record it. Written words are significant and should be thoroughly examined. Audibly spoken words in an otherwise quiet dream also carry weight.
TIP: Verbally sharing your dream with others causes you to hear new verbiage which can lead to an epiphany of the interpretation.
NUMBERS
Numbers in dreams can be literal, such as Genesis 41’s account of the seven fat cows representing seven years of abundance and the seven lean cows representing seven years of famine.
Numbers can also speak to their Hebraic significance. Each letter in the Hebrew alphabet possesses a numerical value as well as a word picture, which is a combination of a pictograph and corresponding meaning. For instance, the number four visually appears as an open door and speaks to an open door.
Referring to the biblical importance of certain numbers can further decode the meaning. We know that one of the meanings of the number seven is the sabbath rest of the seventh day. Thus, seeing the number 47 can speak to the Lord inviting you (that is, an open door) to rest.
Furthermore, numbers can act as various code-languages. A string of numbers may speak to the corresponding Strong’s Concordance number or a particular scripture in the Bible. For instance, if the Lord wants to communicate provision to you, He may show you the number 5142, which is the Strong’s number for trephō, which means, “To nourish, support, feed, give suck to, fatten, bring up, and nurture.”
Similarly, He might show you 421224, which is the 42nd book of the Bible, the 12th chapter, and the 24th verse. This is Luke 12:24 ESV, which reads, “Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds!”
The time in which you awake from a dream can also point you to a corresponding scripture. Awaking at 2:22am can speak to Daniel 2:22 NIV, which reads, “He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him.” This speaks to the Lord giving you revelation of something.
TIP: When recording your dream, note the time of waking. If using a voice recorder, the timestamp of the file will automatically do this.
ACTIONS
Determine the primary actions present in the dream and examine them symbolically, noting any feelings present when the actions occurred and what relevance the actions had to your life at the time of the dream.
As with other categories, the same symbol can be positive or negative depending on the context—being naked is one such example. On the positive side, nakedness can represent nothing to hide, freedom from weights, or intimacy with the Lord. On the negative side, it can represent an exposure of something hidden, vulnerability, or shame. In instances like these, considering the feeling present when the action occurred helps determine the correct interpretation. When naked, did you feel free or did you feel the need to cover up?
Cars can often represent your spiritual journey – if you find yourself driving dangerously and out of control, ask the Lord if there are areas in your life which need to be submitted to Him.
Flying? Consider aspects of your life you’re finding freedom in or problems you’re soaring above.
Taking a test? Perhaps the Lord is showing you tests and trials are coming your way. Pay attention to the outcome—how dreams end are significant.
TIP: Corrective dreams are life-saving, “keeping our soul from the pit” (Job 33:14-18)—ask for them.
BIBLE
While there are many other categories of symbols, Biblical symbols are my favourite. The scriptures conveniently provide us with a plethora of existing interpretations, and God loves to reiterate them. Oil is a symbol of anointing, honey of prosperity, rainbow of promise, mountain of government, purple of royalty, and so forth.
A firm foundation in the word of God is imperative – not optional – to accurately interpreting dreams. While knowledge of the scriptures act to filter everything you interpet, they also provide an amazing database from which to pull from, opening up entire new realms of wisdom and understanding.
This is particularly important when we are learning to hear God’s voice. There are prophetic people who elevate the internal or audible voice which they perceive to be God above scripture, which is the standard and arbiter of truth, for Psalm 138:2 NKJV reads, “For You have magnified Your word above all Your name.”, and 2 Timothy 3:16-17 ESV reads, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
We must filter everything we perceive to hear from God, whether it be via dreams, visions, internal impressions, audible voices or radical visitations, through the Word as the faithful Bereans did.
This is my single greatest caution in interpreting dreams. There are people today with great gifts in the prophetic and words of knowledge, who are in reality receiving their words from familiar spirits who are communicating with familiar spirits in others, feeding this to the individual under the guise of Holy Spirit. This is why gifting, signs, and wonders cannot be used as a test – the word is clear that antichrist spirits are able to do all these things (Revelation 13:13-14).
TIP: If what you’re receiving doesn’t align with the word of God or the character of God as revealed in the word, it must be rejected.
Context
Context is key. When Joseph resolved to divorce Mary over the conception of Jesus, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream explaining that the babe was immaculately conceived of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 1:18-24). Obviously, the context determined the dream was not symbolic, but literal.
When recording a dream, indicate any notable occurrences around that time, such as a question you’ve asked the Lord, a decision you’ve been debating, something you’ve been praying or thinking about, a trial you’re undergoing, memorable events of the past few days, something the Lord has been teaching you about lately, and so forth.
Determining relevant context to a dream clicks together the puzzle pieces and locks the interpretation in place.
TIP: If interpreting a dream for another, be sure to ask them context-related questions to avoid injecting personal bias.
Putting it Together
The less pieces to the puzzle, the simpler it is. Once you’ve recorded your dream, distill it to its simplest form, removing unnecessary details so the dream is clear and concise.
While more descriptive details will reveal an added depth to the dream, for the purpose of cultivating the skill of interpretation, we want to first focus on identifying the core message God is communicating. Once we are familiar with the process and can comfortably interpret, we can begin going deeper.
With your simplified dream written out, begin identifying the core symbols of the dream: the locale, who was present, what actions were being performed, and so on. Now, write out the context of the dream – that is, any notable occurrences in your waking life that might set the stage for the dream.
With all of our pieces at the ready, we can begin maneuvering them until they fit in place. Look at the pieces from different perspectives. With each symbol, which of the numerous meanings resonate with you, are most relevant to the context, and fit together best with the surrounding pieces?
If you’re having trouble solving the riddle, find a quiet, private place in which you can still yourself before the Lord, focusing on Him. Ask Him for wisdom, and per James 1:5, He will give it to you. Go through each symbol with Him, journaling fleeting impressions and spontaneous thoughts, a common form in which God speaks, and reevaluate the dream’s pieces. If difficulty persists, move on to the next dream and return to it at a later time—it’s okay not to understand every dream; there’s a grace to grow.
Once you’ve successfully interpreted the dream and it resonates with you/the dreamer, determine any actionables the Lord is leading you into. In Habakkuk 2:2, upon hearing from the Lord, the Lord instructs Habakkuk to “Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it.”
TIP: An accurate interpretation will bear witness with your spirit. Reevaluate if it feels off.
Actionables can include: repentance, personal declaration, corporate proclamation, intercession, strategy, and more. Faithful stewardship requires partnering with what the Lord is saying—failure to act can lead to the removal of what God’s entrusted you with. We must be diligent to avoid the trap of looking for new words while ignoring the ones He’s already given us.
Finally, it’s a good practice to write a one- or two-sentence summary of the interpretation, praying it back to the Lord. Some actionables are as simple as this, and it also makes revisiting interpretations easier to locate. Given dreams can speak of things many years ahead, this is important.
TIP: When you’ve dreamed, wake up immediately and record it. Studies show that if you do not awake within five minutes of the dream’s end, you typically won’t recall it. If you only remember some of it, that is likely enough.
IN SHORT
Summarize the dream.
Identify core symbols.
Identify primary actions.
Note feelings and when they occurred.
Note context.
Interpret one symbol at a time.
Combine elements into a coherent message.
Ask if the interpretation resonates with you/the dreamer.
If yes: determine the actionable item(s).
If not: Be still, pray, reevaluate.
Partner with the word by executing the actionable(s).
TIP: During the daytime, transcribe the dream. Cloud-based storage is ideal for backups and multi-device sync. Google Drive is a great, free option.
Sample Dreams
We’ll now apply the tools we’ve learned to interpret some dreams. Consider the context as you move through each symbol. Once you believe you’ve unlocked the mystery, rollover the text in the coloured box to highlight it, revealing the answer.
Dream #1: “I was covered in staplers and chains, held together by them. I slowly pulled them off. When I finally removed all of them, I didn’t break apart like I thought I would.”
Context: Dreamed by a new believer who is desiring to follow Christ.
Interpretation (tap + drag finger/mouse to highlight)
The staplers and chains are ungodly things that were once a part of the dreamer’s makeup. As Christ sanctifies him, they are being removed, and he realizes his true identity was never in the sin and weights that once bound him—he is freed up to run the race (Hebrews 12:1).Dream #2: “I’m enthusiastically showing a vending machine to my sister, the contents of which I’ve created. There are a variety of my creations, and I ask her to pick one. She does, and I encourage her to pick another one instead. The item falls and gets stuck, never being released.”
Context: Dreamed by a believer who is having issues focusing on God, continually thinking up new ideas and plans. Her heavenly assignment is to teach consecration to lukewarm, believing women.
Interpretation (tap + drag finger/mouse to highlight)
A vending machine possesses a variety of junk food. The variety speaks to the ideas and plans which are distracting the dreamer from God, and the junk food speaks to things she is consuming which are harmful to her spiritual health. The redirection of her sister’s focus speaks to the dreamer’s heavenly assignment, which is to redirect the focus of her sisters in Christ to Christ, as well as her own inability to focus. The item is stuck because she is unable to be released into her assignment until she gets spiritually unstuck and refocuses on God.Dream #3: “I’m with my best friend, my sister, and my mother in the living room. There is an invitation to come into the backyard garden and play in the snow. They don’t want to.”
Context: The dreamer was asked the predominant character-trait associated with each individual. The best friend was associated with being temporally minded, the sister with busyness and the inability to finish what she starts, and the mother with being overly critical. The dreamer confessed these are all traits she struggles with.
Interpretation (tap + drag finger/mouse to highlight)
The backyard garden represents a private place of spiritual growth. In Song of Solomon 4:16, we observe the invitation of the Beloved Bridegroom into the Bride’s garden. Seeds are planted and watered, weeds are dug up and removed, branches are plucked and pruned. These are all biblical symbols of sanctification. Snow is a biblical symbol for purity: Isaiah 1:18 says though our “sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.” The three women present in the living room represent three ungodly character traits the dreamer is living with, which Jesus is inviting her to remove that she would have freedom, represented by play.Volume 2
In Volume 1 we’ve focused on developing a toolkit of understanding which enables us to accurately and consistently interpret the voice of the Lord. In Volume 2 we’ll look at dream authority, encounters and visitations in dreams, and seeing in the spirit through vague images, clear images, visions, and more. Volume 2 coming soon.
Discover the supernatural beings of the bible by meeting the Living Letters of the Hebrew Aleph-Bet in this Christian Mystic Q&A.