Joel 2:28   New American Standard Bible

The Dream

This past Sunday morning I was awakened by this incredible dream. I quickly looked at my phone to check the time, it was 3:26 a.m. I knew I had to journal the dream, but I needed a pen and my purse was upstairs. This dream was too long for me to remember all the important details. I did not want to disturb anyone, so I got up and journaled the dream on the notes in my iPhone.

In this dream I was in a large airplane. I remember that my mother was one of the passengers; my friend Jane and a few others were on the plane as well. Sitting directly behind the pilot was a young child whose mother was Asian. The strange thing about this was I knew that there was a close relationship between them.  It seemed to me that the pilot was the father of the child. The plane was pretty empty, and as we were flying we hit a horrific rainstorm; it was unbelievably scary. The plane was equipped with a sunroof, which intensified the severity of the storm. As I looked up to the sunroof of the plane, all I could see was sheets of water pelting the plane. Suddenly the pilot was descending to a lower altitude to avoid the storm. I was concerned with how low he was flying the plane, when I noticed that it was about to taxi on to a country road. I still did not understand what was going on. As I watched the plane it was now taxiing on to a city street. The pilot opened the doors and told us to get out so that we could use the restroom in a department store. As I was exiting the plane, I asked the pilot, “What city are we in?” He answered, “Canton, Ohio.” This department store was really old and took up an entire city block. I got off the plane to make my way to the restroom, when I heard Jane call my name. She was on the floor above me in line for the restroom. I told her to wait for me because I did not want to get lost.  I picked up a loaf of bread and went to purchase it, but I needed to borrow money from Jane. I accidentally dropped the bread on the old wooden floor of the store. The bread became soiled, so I gave it to a box-boy. I got distracted and found a needle and thread to sew a tear in my pants. The pants are orange-reddish but I used navy blue thread. The line to the restroom is so long. I continued to sew the pants when I discovered that I’m doing it wrong. I started all over again, and by this time I’m lost and ended up in the laundry section of the store where people were washing their white garments. In a panic I ran back to the restroom and found that the line was much shorter. When I finished, I quickly washed my hands and headed out to the plane. When I reached the door, the plane was nowhere to be found. I was so scared and asked a stranger, “Do you know where the plane is?” He pointed and said, “It’s on 28th Street.” I ran as fast as I could to find the plane, and as I got to my seat I needed my mother to move so that I could get on the plane. The dream ended.

The Interpretation: 

Believe it or not, this was a warning dream for me.

Pilot – God

Child and Mother – Jesus and Mary

Plane – Missionary work

Sunroof – To allow the sun in, to shed light; to allow the Gospel or Evangelization

Rainstorm – Trials

Canton – A city in Ohio named after a city in China, which is now the port city of Guangzhou

Restroom – Cleansing

Tear in my orange-reddish pants – Holes in clothes that are worn out, new covering coming

Navy Blue Thread on orange-reddish pants  – Simple repair when done right , but I was not using the right color thread

Jane – Holy woman of God

My Mother –  An intercessor

Bread- The Word of God

Laundry room – Cleaning holy white garments

28th Street – 2+8= 10; Ten represents order, restoration, The 10 commandments

I did not share this dream with anyone in my family because I did not understand it at the time. I  praise God that I did take the time to journal the dream, because I feel that God is warning me. God is my pilot in all that I do, and He is allowing me to clean up my prayer life, ministry, etc. I am going to go through trials, but I will see them coming (sunroof), and I will know how to pray beforehand. Canton is a Chinese word, and God is calling me to pray for the Chinese Christians who are being persecuted (the mother of the child was Asian). The bread represents the Word of God. Recently I was ministering to several Protestants, but came across as arrogant by stating that the part of the Catholic Bible that I was sharing was omitted by Martin Luther. Even though I was kidding, these were hurtful words. God wanted to correct my behavior so that I would always be a loving witness to His Word. In the dream I carelessly dropped the bread and it became soiled. Though I was teaching, I was not a loving witness.

My Prayer

Lord, I thank You for allowing us to spend time with Mikos, Jenny, Maddie and Wil. They are growing up so fast, and this time spent together is precious for Mike and me.

We continue to lift up Ukraine and all the devastation that they are experiencing. I cannot imagine my family being forcibly torn apart like they are. I pray that this will be a short war, and that Your mighty hand will intervene on behalf of all Ukrainians.

Social media is inundated with “Pray for Ukraine” as if it were just a popular trend. But this war is real, and it is a war of good versus evil. Russia is an atheistic nation because it is ruled by an atheist. Ukraine, on the other hand, is 85% Christian. The majority of the Christians in Ukraine are Eastern Orthodox. In 1054 The Great Schism separated  the Western Church from the Eastern Church. The Eastern Orthodox separation was due to both political and religious reasons.

I always remember when visiting the Holy Land, and especially the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, how diverse religious groups are in control of different sections of the church. We always visited during Holy Week when the promp and circumstance is at its highest. When the Turkish guards lead the way for the procession of the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, they  make an entrance that commands attention. The sound of the pounding staffs shakes the earth around you, and the pageantry from all the commotion is beautiful to experience. The Franciscans follow in their plain brown habits, making a humble entrance through the doors of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. As of today the Western Church (Roman Catholic) and the Eastern Orthodox have yet to overcome their differences. I respect both, but remain in my Roman Catholic roots.

The Divide

Our country is greatly divided. Our divide stems from a political stand off with each group digging in their heels on what they believe to be true. I am on the side of the Word of God and all that it represents. It’s no surprise to the rest of the world that we are perceived as fools. Our president has appointed Rachel Levine as Assistant Secretary of Health, but she is part of the division. In the United States, we expect these types of appointments, with the push to cover the U.S. with a cloud of dissension by accepting whatever the Left throws our way. The rest of the world is wondering why we have become so weak. We are the leaders of the Free World, but to the world, we seemed to have dropped our guard. The United States once stood for freedom and unity, but our petty civil war is causing world leaders to second guess our strengths. It is apparent that we need to pull up our bootstraps and take up our swords, for this spiritual battle is ongoing. What do I mean by this statement? Many Americans are not going to cave into the demands of our current government. We are a united front; Protestants, Catholics and Muslims alike are in one accord when It comes to our freedom. When I gave the example of Rachel Levine, it was to express the true fact that our president wanted to be the first to appoint a transgender and nothing more; it had nothing to do with her experience. Our country is compelled to accept these appointments, but the rest of the world is not desensitized to these forced ideologies.

With weakness comes the attacks, and Putin is no dummy, he sees all our internal conundrums and took advantage in attacking Ukraine. This new war is for Putin to annihilate all Christian beliefs. Putin may have all the power to take over this land, but it is God Who will see it through to the end. The people of Ukraine are fighting for their freedom and to protect their religious beliefs. God will be on their side.

We Pray

Prayer changes the path of the evildoers. As we see what is playing out before us with this unnecessary war, we can effectively change the direction of this war. God hears all of our prayers, and millions are praying for this war to cease.

 

1 Corinthians 10:13  New American Bible (Revised Edition)

This verse clearly states that God will give you as much as you can take.  So why do people choose euthanasia? We all have an assigned time to be born and a time to die. When we take that role away from the Creator, we are destined to be held accountable for our own actions. I can only speak for myself but, if you are truly serving God, you would understand the big picture of life. It’s not complicated  because we are to be witnesses to the rest of the world as to how we manage difficult situations like facing death. You can either give up, or give it to God.

Ann

I have known this lady for several years, but due to COVID we both got busy with life. Ann always attended the same 6:15 a.m. Mass as me and we became friends. Once our church opened up for regular indoor services, the 6:15 a.m. Mass was no longer available. I knew that Ann was going to another parish, attending daily Mass and going to Adoration. I had no idea what my friend was about to encounter. In November she developed sepsis and, due to the severity of her condition, both of her legs were amputated. By the time I reached out to her, she was already at a rehab center learning to get in and out of the wheelchair and moving toward prosthesis. Ann wants the freedom to attend daily Mass once again.

Kathy

Kathy is another lady about my age who attends daily Mass. About a month ago I noticed that she was wearing an unusual hair covering, so I started to pray for her. On Friday after Mass, I approached Kathy and told her I was praying for her. She shared with me that she was suffering from ovarian cancer and had to go through one more round of chemotherapy before her surgery. Her optimistic demeanor was written all over her smile. Kathy is the one person who is always filled with the joy of the Lord.  She exudes instant forgiveness in her everyday mannerisms, and everyone who knows her loves her. She is in total dependence on the Lord for her healing, and she is in my daily prayers.

Carol

Carol was a powerful woman in God. She was my dear friend and helped me interpret difficult dreams. Her cancer was slow and excruciatingly painful; she had an aggressive type of metastatic breast cancer that spread to several places in her body. Carol never, ever gave up the fight; instead she offered up her suffering for others. She died a beautiful, peaceful death.

Jamie

A year-and-a-half ago, Jamie contacted me via Facebook. She was a distant relative of ours.  Other than what she shared on her social media, I knew very little about her. She was highly regarded as a mover and shaker in the public schools. Educating and mentoring students was a gift that she graciously shared with others. She was suffering from pancreatic cancer and, as her health was declining, she continued to post thought-provoking information about life. None of her posts mentioned God. I do not want to be misunderstood about Jamie because I am not her judge; only God is. She kept her communication open to us and we were planning a trip to visit her right before Christmas, but with her health concerns it was not possible. She spent the holidays in the hospital, attempting to manage her pain. Last week she posted what were to be her last public words. She stated that she could no longer fight, thanking her family, friends, colleagues and students. This alarming post was troubling because it left me with so many questions. When we reached out to her she texted back that she had decided to take end-of-life drugs on Wednesday of the same week. I quickly made phone calls to several prayer warriors,  and we started praying for her. I prayed that she would experience the presence of our Lord. I prayed that He would take her home naturally, and I prayed that she would be at peace.

Why did she take this extreme measure? Pancreatic cancer is known as the cancer that causes the highest degree of pain. Pain invades your cognitive thinking and can control your emotions. It seems that Jamie was desperate and gave in to her pain. We serve a merciful God Who knows the hearts of all mankind. To those who cannot bear the crosses God gives us, they, for whatever reason, take control of their personal situations. As Catholics we are taught that end-of-life drugs are forbidden because they are used to assist in euthanasia.

I took the time to read many of Jamie’s responses on Facebook. She was loved and made a huge impact on her colleagues and students. Mays she rest in eternal peace.

Euthanasia

We do not know the hour of our death. That is why we trust God with all of our trials. My friend Ann accepted her fate. She said that while she was in the hospital praying, she did not complain to God; instead she prayed, “I surrender my life to you.” She experienced an inward locution speaking to her and saying, “I gave you the mountain, now climb it.” Ann did not ask for this horrendous trial, but she is withstanding it with the grace of God.

Dear Lord, I pray for an end to euthanasia and for those who are gravely suffering from incurable diseases. Lord, give them the full knowledge of what they will experience in Your Kingdom. I pray for Ann to adjust to her new life and that she would soon be able to return to daily Mass. I lift up Kathy, Lord. Please heal these precious women. Lastly I lift up Jamie. She was Your daughter and her life had worth. I pray that her family will honor her with a beautiful service. Amen.