It's Raining Horses

I recently had a dream that I was inside a luxurious mansion representing a church when a commotion broke out in the backyard. There were shouts and loud thuds, one happening right after the other. I rushed to the window and was shocked to find grown men and horses falling from the sky like rain. They were plunging to their deaths on the grass, and dead bodies everywhere.

Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God" (Psalm 20:7 ).

The men and horses from my dream symbolically represent the things of the old (self) nature and what people have trusted above God. Some of these things had been kept private until now (in their backyard), but as it began to rain, it was drawing the attention of the rest of the church. In the dream, God was showing me that He was sending rain, or judgment, upon the things of the flesh and the methods of man in the American church. These are what we've built with our own strength and have become our confidence above God Himself. They needed to "die" so we could live by His Spirit and enter His rest.

A few weeks later, I had another dream and saw that a father figure, a church leader, was about to fall from a very high place, just like the horses and men I saw in my other dream. God showed me that He was turning this person over to his flesh for a time. The church leader was meant to fall on a very specific target: the center of an intersection, which symbolically represented an important place of decision (or intersect) in his life. Knowing this was about to happen, the townspeople (church) and I ran into our homes and nearby stores to find things to cushion his fall and make it softer for him. Although it was well-meaning, I realized that no amount of blankets or pillows would help him survive the distance he was about to fall.

Next, I saw the person's family members, who were his spiritual family, unite and form a circle. Together, they were going up in the air to meet him. I understood their heart was to cover, surround, and support him through the fall. As they ascended, however, I saw them encounter hidden anti-aircraft weaponry; bombs started going off everywhere in mid-air. I realized there would be significant casualties, and though they were well-intentioned, it was a suicide mission. There was little chance that they (or their ministries) would survive, let alone could they help their friend.

This dream was a warning to spiritual families with leaders and others undergoing discipline this season. It was heart-warming to see people uniting and supporting each other; however, their actions counteracted what God was permitting to happen in the person's life and where He was leading him. We do not have more compassion than God, and it is in His mercy that He, at times, allows trials to come into our lives so we can repent and/or mature.

In 1 Corinthians 5, Paul gives some instructions to the church about unrepented of sin and discipline. When individuals, especially leaders, are caught in a continuous cycle of sin, we're not instructed to turn a blind eye, console them, or hope that it works out on its own. At times, some have done this under the pretense of "honor." Instead, it needs to be confronted by those who have a relationship with them and, sometimes, exposed to protect those they lead. If the person does not repent, Paul instructed the Corinthian church to turn them over to their flesh. This is one of the ways we're instructed to deal with sin at times within the church. For clarity's sake, it's not how we're told to relate to those who don't profess to have faith in Jesus.

God was orchestrating the leader's fall in my dream to deliver him, and that's why there was an exact target: a decision. The leader's fall was meant to kill a part of his flesh (nature) that needed to die. However, if the people around him got in the way or tried to carry out their own view of mercy, it could prevent the discipline from having its full effect, and there would be unnecessary casualties. When God disciplines individuals, we're to meet them at the place of their repentance, not stop them from reaching there. Then, we can come to their aid by comforting, encouraging, and forgiving them if we've been wronged. What may be lost in the fall is not of eternal significance, but what is meant to be gained and take place in the heart will last forever, resulting in eternal rewards.

This may be difficult to read, and clearly needs to be discerned and prayed about before applying. Though it's not enjoyable to share about leaders falling or discipline, but I feel responsible for warning others when God gives me dreams like this. As an encouragement, I've learned that God's goodness exists as powerfully in discipline and correction as in miracles and seasons of prosperity. Prophecy will pass away, and tongues will seize, but love lasts forever. God disciplines us because He loves us, and, at times, He will lead us to a place and allow our flesh nature and "horses and chariots" to be destroyed so our spirits may be preserved for eternity.