Understanding Your Dreams: How to Unlock the Meaning of God's Messages

by Sandie Freed

He sometimes gives dreams containing unfamiliar people. Unless you understand that they likely represent your life, you may not comprehend the intent behind your dream. In that way, dreams are similar to a snapshot. Have you observed a picture of someone you did not personally know? You probably cannot relate to that person. Actually, most often you would not care about someone you did not know in a picture. Many dreams are like that. We often dream of people we do not know and scenes we have never experienced. We must become committed to understanding the people, scenes and settings represented in the snapshot, for quite often the people in a picture reveal characteristics about us.

Spiritual discernment is always a necessity in dream interpretation. At times, you can interpret your dreams by how you feel when you awake—were you troubled, or were you afraid or concerned in the dream? Did you feel anxious when you awoke? Note your general conclusion concerning the dream, and then ask the Lord to sharpen your discernment as you begin to study the different symbolic meanings. Even if you feel certain you know the interpretation, always pause to ask the Lord for the full, divine interpretation. Our natural instincts cannot always be trusted, whereas our divine giftings (like discernment) will lead us to the heart and thoughts of God.

Every dream from God is delivered with an innate passion to search for its true meaning. It is such a strong drive that you will not be able to ignore it! That is because God’s Spirit inside you will continue to speak to your “inner witness” to guide you into all truth.

Another direction is to pick out the main character and then make all types of notes about that person. List any other important objects, people, etc., and then make notes of what significance they might have in the dream. Remember, if you are not the main subject of the dream, you are basically an observer. The dream, therefore, is not directly about you. This is a dream that is usually meant for prayer. Make notes of how you might pray, and also make notes about the person in the dream.

Do not forget to assign every dream a title and include the date the dream was received. Titles and dates will later prove to be important as the Lord continues to unfold His revelation.

Ezekiel 37 describes the power of the prophetic word: When Ezekiel prophesied to dry bones, the bones began to move and come together. The bones were activated with life when the prophetic declaration was released. As a result, the dead bones became a vast and mighty army. When prophecy is spoken, things begin to move in the Spirit realm. Supernaturally, there is a divine shift in the heavenlies, and the dry areas of our lives that seem dead begin to show fruitfulness. This is one way to “wage a good warfare” with the Word of the Lord: “This charge I commit unto thee, son Timothy, according to the prophecies which went before on thee, that thou by them mightest war a good warfare” (1 Timothy 1:18 KJV).

What were my emotions during the dream? Was I at peace? Was I fearful? Did I see colors? Was I a participant or was I simply an observer?

in the back represents fear, running

pills. Though I weighed only 78 pounds, the anorexic way of life demanded losing more and more weight if at all possible. A skeleton-thin body was not enough to stop this demonically induced oppression.

My desperate need for control ruled my every choice. I was unable to control my environment to ensure emotional safety. I was unable to risk more rejection or abandonment; therefore, I isolated myself. Controlling my weight appeared to be the only thing I was able to accomplish well. I could lose weight better than anyone I knew. I took pride in this accomplishment and felt as if I were in total control. The truth, however, was that anorexia had control of me.

My heart sank as tears welled in my eyes. My lips quivered uncontrollably. I knew that God had spoken to my young daughter in her dream in an attempt to reach me. He was not trying to frighten my daughter or cause her to feel abandoned. He was trying to reach me. The Lord is so wise that He knew that if I could not live for myself, I would fight to live for her. No one else could love her as much as I do, I thought. I am her mother, and my daughter has a destiny in God to fulfill. I am the privileged one the Lord chose to birth her and rear her. A desire to fight for life arose within me.

I knew I could survive this devastating bout with anorexia and bulimia, for God had spoken to me through my daughter. For the first time, I heard His voice through a dream. This began my journey into full recovery. It was not an easy road; I had many hidden emotional addictions to work through. Issues of control had to be faced. Deep-seated inadequacies, fears of failure and fears of rejection were singled out and worked through with professional counselors. Most importantly I realized that the hand of God was in total control. But it was not until I began to have dreams of deliverance that I experienced the full freedom I had desired.

Many believers do not believe in the necessity of deliverance. It is my personal belief that, although Christians cannot be “possessed” by demons, due to choices we have made and generational strongholds we can certainly be influenced and affected by them. My heart’s desire is not to stir up a theological debate concerning this issue; I am simply giving my personal testimony, what I know to be true concerning my need for deliverance from much demonic oppression. Before you decide that deliverance is not for you, let me explain how the Scripture defines deliverance. After you read this, pray over it and take it to heart; I am certain you will reach out to the Lord for more freedom yourself!

Believer, I needed freedom! I needed to be rescued, and I was crying out for the Lord to help me. I am grateful that He chose to answer me with dreams that opened doors for complete deliverance.

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

In the coming chapters you will read more of my personal testimony concerning my deliverance from the premature death assignment—deliverance that came through God-given dreams and visions. I am excited and confident that the Holy Spirit is speaking to you as we continue this journey together. Turn the page and expect an impartation from heaven that will empower you to experience all that heaven has to offer! You will never consider your dreams worthless again.

Most of the time, to heal us emotionally, spiritually and physically, God will reveal the strongholds that continually oppress His children. Many physical and emotional problems are the result of demonic oppression. Mine definitely was! Through revelation, God begins to expose His truth so that we may be completely free. Therefore, knowing, seeing and agreeing with the truth will release us from demonic activity.

To not receive the dreams and visions that God gives you is to refuse truth, the very thing Christ came to give us. By embracing what the Lord releases through prophetic revelations and dreams, the Body of Christ can move to a new level in the Spirit.

Only those who are mature in the Spirit are able to digest strong meat. It requires laying aside childish ways, including mindsets and tradition, and growing up in God. It also requires that His children no longer come into agreement with the lies of Satan.

complete. Part of our destiny is to operate in our godly giftings; if there is no fulfillment of destiny, then we will suffer from being incomplete and unfulfilled. Our potential lies dormant until activated by the Holy Spirit. At that point, God desires that each individual walk in the fullness of His calling (Ephesians 3:19).

The Lord promised restoration in order for us to receive hope and peace through the power of the Holy Spirit. Restoration also implies that there is a rebuilding of the walls, bringing back the glory of God into our lives. For me, when God began to restore, He began to rebuild the walls of my life. Walls of defense against my enemies (fear, doubt, unbelief, insecurity and abandonment) were erected by the power of the Holy Spirit. No longer could my enemies gain entrance into my life. The days of plunder into my land (my life) by Satan and his cohorts were over!

As I mentioned in the previous chapter, deliverance implies freedom and liberation. Freedom is available for every child of God.

me. Coming from a denominational background in which the people did not believe in the gifts of the Holy Spirit, I did not understand what was available. Sunday after Sunday I would approach the altar, begging God to help me progress. I had tried with all my might to fully recover, only to propel backward again. My weight had stabilized at ninety pounds, but I still frequented the old habits of laxative and drug abuse. I was older now, weary and worn down from the emotional and physical struggle. Mine had been a seven-year battle with anorexia, bulimia, death wishes and struggles for survival and wholeness. I was surviving—but barely. Then, in one night, breakthrough came!

Chills ran down my spine. In great disbelief, I refuted her statement. “No! Not Karen Carpenter!” I responded as if Karen Carpenter had been my friend. But actually, for the first time, I was facing the full reality that people really do die from anorexia. I had always admired Karen Carpenter; I could relate to her as a person, and I could relate to her illness and, now, her death. I felt the shock of her passing as though it had happened to me. Her musical recordings and distinct singing style began churning in my memory, bringing me back to events in high school and college. Then, it happened. The audible voice of God got my full attention because He loves me so. You will be next if you don’t turn this behavior around NOW.

All the while we are hoping, believing and applying faith that one day, as He promises, we will get the breakthrough. Suddenly comes the major shift into our destiny; we have experienced the kairos moment of change. Kairos time brings with it a significant change in our lives that affects history.

After the birth, different responsibilities will be required. The birthing process will be painful; it will require endurance and determination. Then, suddenly, as the baby comes forth . . . the kairos moment occurs! The birth has come; history is changed and a new life has been born. It was the same for me the moment I heard God’s audible voice. No longer could I remain the same.

Because of the divine encounter, hearing God’s voice and seeing an open vision, I fully embraced the direction of change.

change. Though I was no longer anorexic, I now faced death again if I did not witness a miracle in my body. I said to myself, “I feel like I am on a merry-go-ground and I can’t get off!” After saying that, I lay down and instantly fell asleep to receive a very encouraging dream.

Once awake, I sought the Lord for the interpretation. The door was the place of my freedom. The carousel represented “going around the mountain again”—in other words, I was dealing with attacks from Satan again. The bumper car symbolized that no weapon formed against me is going to prosper. As you probably know, bumper cars are heavily padded, and any impact on the car is deflected away due to the cushioning around it. The Lord showed me that the bumper car was my anointing! My life, my hope, my strength were in the anointing of God. As long as I was flowing and moving in that, the devil had no place in my life. My connection was to stay in the safe place of anointing. Most exciting was that the Lord was revealing that a future victory over the devil was very real and tangible!

Speak to whatever is opposing you right now! Job 22:28 says that we can make a decree and whatever we decree becomes established. In closing this chapter, let’s examine this passage carefully: “You shall also decide and decree a thing, and it shall be established for you; and the light [of God’s favor] shall shine upon your ways” (Job 22:28 AMPC).

When we make a decree, we are speaking forth a type of declaration. The Hebrew word for “decree” in this passage is gazar, a primitive root word meaning “to cut down or off, (figuratively) to destroy, divide, exclude, or decide.” Dear believer, think about it. When you declare God’s Word and speak forth His promises concerning your life and future, you are cutting off the voice of the enemy. Yes! When you decree your promises, you cut down the enemy; you cut off his plans and you exclude yourself from them. Isn’t that awesome?

Though I was ministering under the anointing and power of the Holy Spirit, even witnessing miracles, I still dealt with identity problems. Desperate once again, I cried out for more deliverance. Again, God answered my prayers . . . this time through not just one dream but a series of dreams. At first, I could not piece them together, because I did not yet have the full interpretations. Through patience and persistence, however, the truth began to unfold through the Holy Spirit. Dream after dream about generational curses provided the keys I needed to open the doors of deliverance.

I asked the Lord to reveal the stronghold holding me captive to this spirit of premature death.

At the same time, idolatry, mysticism and witchcraft were prevalent in his tribe, and these things opened the door for the enemy to gain a foothold in his descendants.

Dear reader, listen up, because you will find this interesting. When I was a child, I had many demonic visitations, dreams and visions of demons. I would awake from these encounters screaming in fear. It seemed as if I could actually see the demons manifest. I now believe, however, that I was having visions and visions within dreams. Upon my awakening or coming out of a vision, my parents would rush to help me . . . but they blamed it all on my vivid imagination. As a result, I grew up with emotional scars from these occurrences. I felt misunderstood and abandoned by my parents’ lack of interest in what was occurring in the night seasons. Nightmares plagued me through most of my childhood. Only much later did I realize the varied aspects of my family history had invited demonic activity and a premature death assignment into my life. It was my generational heritage that released the torment, fear and rejection that plagued me—the result of iniquity in my lineage. Yes, I was marked for the kingdom of darkness through witchcraft and a familiar spirit. These would have to be broken off in order for me to step into life and freedom.

healing. I realized that Scripture states that little by little God would drive away the beasts from my field (see Deuteronomy 7:22).

trusted God enough to know that through a dream He would reveal the hidden areas that withheld my breakthroughs. On my journey toward wholeness, I continued receiving these dreams, and more revelation began to unfold concerning generational curses and strongholds. Each dream proved to be a key to complete deliverance.

Dream of the desolate place. In one dream, I was in a desolate place. I saw myself standing in front of a firing squad. Sweat dripped from my forehead onto the blindfold that covered my eyes. With my hands tied behind me, I was unable to avoid the irritating sweat, and I desperately desired to remove the blindfold in order to see my assailants. The material, which held my eyes captive, was thin enough to see through. I continually strained to focus on the line forming before me. The firing squad was composed of generations of my family, with my relatives forming a line, one behind the other. Each member of my family took a place in line, awaiting the opportunity to execute me. I was not alarmed as I identified my executioners. Though they were my family, it seemed normal and expected that they be the ones to terminate my life. The first family member in line took the gun and aimed at my forehead. The others in line were calmly waiting their turn to do the same, knowing that they would soon be passing the gun to the others. Taking turns to further inflict the punishment was part of the judgment due to my guilt. Very confidently, my first assassin took aim and pulled the trigger; I observed the bullet as it was released from the chamber. It shot forth in very slow motion. Each second was tormenting as I awaited the impact of the blow of death. I closed my eyes, not able to watch any longer. “God!” I cried out inside myself, “Help me!” The dream ended.

The idolatry, mysticism and witchcraft practiced by my ancestors gave Satan a legal right to be in my life. I was constantly tormented with fear and fear of death along with ongoing illness.

Dream of the green corn ceremony. In the dream, I saw myself walking through a field, and green corn appeared everywhere. I saw green kernels and stalks of corn as far as the eye could see. I saw my Creek ancestors gathering together in a time of great harvest. The ancestors were celebrating and eating the green corn. I began to hide behind bushes to observe this bizarre behavior. End of dream.

Remember the importance of the month of September in my life? It seemed as if almost every September I had a dream concerning Indians, but every September I was also deathly ill. While at the museum I wanted to locate the keys that would unlock the mystery behind the bondage I continued to experience around the time of my birthday. Desperately seeking specific books, articles and any documentation, I asked God to reveal a key needed for my freedom.

god. Idolatry was proven in my heritage, and I knew that the consequences of idolatry always involved a generational curse.

Dear one, this dream was key to my breakthrough. The purging that my ancestors did during this ceremony was to “rid” them of their shame! I had dealt with a stronghold of shame since I was a child. Now, with the revelation in this dream I was able to finally break free! My past is difficult to admit to others, but I want to give you confidence that God cares about you, too . . . He wants us to be free. Christ has come to set us free: “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed” (John 8:36 KJV). Yes! The Lord revealed the roots of my anorexic death behavior, and I got excited as the truth began to set me free. The spirit of death was not the only thing that came through my Creek heritage—so did the anorexic and bulimic spirit. I related to my husband the connection between my dreams and all that God revealed. We began to pray and to break the death assignment. I was finally free! And my complete freedom came through the voice of God in the night season. It has been many years now that I have not dealt with an illness on my birthday. I was delivered because of the Word of the Lord delivered through my dream. God cares so much about you that He will bring deliverance keys to you while you sleep. Dear one, He delivered me. He set me free. He healed my mind and my body. Nothing is impossible with God (Matthew 19:26; Mark 10:27). And, precious one, He wants to do the same for you. Yes, keep dreaming!

identities. In this chapter, I want to address God’s desire to speak to our children through dreams and visions and His desire that your child rule and reign in Christ . . . even at a young age!

It is my hope and intent to help you find the answers you need to help your children in these areas. I want to encourage and empower you to help your children understand the value of their dreams and visions. This book may be written for adults, but many of the truths and testimonies in it apply to the lives of children, too, and they can encourage and empower you to become a “life coach” to your own children as they encounter God in dreams and visions. (And, yes, I understand that parents have to use wisdom and verbiage appropriate for the ages of their children; know that I have taken that into account throughout this chapter.) So use what you have already learned, and have an open mind and heart as we finish this journey together. God wants to use your children for His glory just as much as He desires to use you!