Stepping onto the Road
Song of Songs 2:4
New International Version (NIV)
4 Let him lead me to the banquet hall,
and let his banner over me be love.
and let his banner over me be love.
I am full of gratitude for the sense of belonging at Write! Canada, and for the intensive instruction, inspiration and fellowship packed into the two and a half days.
Back in April, I had a mental image as one of my colleagues prayed. It was an image of a person I knew was Jesus, with his back to me and towards a person who was surrounded by balls lying on the floor. My colleague had been praying for help juggling the balls we all try so hard to keep up in the air.
The figure in the foreground picked up a blue ball from the ground and placed it so gently and lovingly in her hands; cupping her hands with both of his. The ball he gave her was the one to hold in that moment--it was the opposite of the stress of juggling balls, trying to keep them all in the air.
The image impacted me then and guides me daily, to submit my agenda to God moment by moment, but it wasn't until I was leaving Write! Canada on Saturday, that the message went even deeper.
The conference was at an end. Rooms had been emptied and cases loaded into cars as we prepared to scatter like seeds packed with promise, to all corners of Canada.
Ramona, a member of the prayer team, with short golden hair, tanned face and smiling tawny eyes, was giving out Word Guild, "stress reduction balls," to the departing writers. She headed in my direction, hand outstretched with one for me. As she pressed the ball into my hand, eyes smiling into mine, my eyes filled with tears, and I laughed and cried at its significance to me; for this, I knew, was the ball I was meant to carry. Its message: Changing the world with Words.
The next morning; Sunday; I knew that if I was seriously to follow this call, I had to step down from the worship team. Whenever I have thought about it before, it has felt like a difficult decision, but not now.
My friend Frances, who leads our team, apologized for forgetting to tell me about last Tuesday's practice. "It was a ball I dropped," she said; I smiled inwardly.
As I told each person that needed to know, there were nothing but blessings on my decision when people heard the reason.
Frances held my hand tightly and said, "Nothing will change--except that you will become a better writer."
“He used often to say there was only one Road; that it was like a great river: its springs were at every doorstep, and every path was its tributary. 'It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out of your door,' he used to say. 'You step into the Road, and if you don't keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off to.” ― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring
Comments
Obviously it was a God given dream. I am so happy you are moving forward in obedience. Truly that is the best place to be - always.
I understand the power of a dream that is "touched" again at a later date. I had a very strong dream about the rapture. I and my husband were in our house when it happened. For most part the dream was scriptural in that we were translated from inside to outside in less than a second and we met others in the air above the house/neighbourhood. The only part that wasn't what I imagined or is outlined in scripture was that in the east, as we were transported outside for a moment, was a giant head of the Lord. I know He will return in the clouds as He left - but this was different. Not like any picture I've seen, not like any image I've viewed - this huge, huge, huge whole world could see head. That was the "weird" of the dream. We then were caught away - I awoke. The image in the dream of us suspended in the air - and seeing others here and there above the city - all the believers in Christ - in the sky was so powerful. It stayed with me an I reviewed it over and over in my head and heart. About two years later I was attending a prophecy conference and the speaker from Liberty College touched on the rapture and an image came up on the screen. I couldn't breathe. It showed a world and to the right was a huge head of the Lord looking at it. I started crying (and I'm not a big crier) and couldn't stop for the longest time - it so touched me. That is what I saw!!! I approached the speaker asking where he got the image. He didn't know - someone else had put his notes together. I contacted that person. No one knew. I scoured the internet. Found many similar - but not the one. Even so - I cannot get the image out of my head. I'm tearing up just thinking about it. Never underestimate the power of the Spirit to use dreams. Bless you as you endeavour to bless others.
I can imagine the deep emotional response you would have had when seeing that slide came up on the screen--your dream. Wow.
How amazing and wonderful--and thank you for your encouragement.
Go. Do.