God Speaks in Riddles

we rest in our beds, our mind shuts down, and our spirit is open to heavenly counsel. The world is busy and full of activity, but once we shut off the world and enter (REM) sleep, we enter a world of dreaming. There are around 33 dreams in the Book of Genesis, alone. The book of Job, said to be the oldest book in the Bible, mentions these riddles in the night and the reason behind them.

“In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls on men, as they slumber in bed, Then He opens the ears of men and seals their instruction, in order to turn a man from his conduct and to cover a person’s pride.

–Job 33:15-17, TLV

The book of Joel prophesied a future event and time when the Holy Spirit (Ruach HaKodesh) would be poured out on all flesh. After Yeshua’s ascension, He told the disciples to wait for the promise, the gift, and outpouring of the Holy Spirit.

Peter, during Pentecost/Shavuot, stands up and addresses the crowd, and gives a message during the feast quoting the prophet Joel and tells the people this is now happening. The rehearsal is now coming forth before their eyes! He explains that what they are seeing, and hearing isn’t due to drunkenness but the power of the Ruach (Holy Spirit).

But this is what was spoken by Joel, The Prophet:” ‘It shall be done in the last days, says God,’ I shall pour out my Spirit on everybody, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy. Your young men shall see visions, and your Elders shall dream dreams.” “And I shall pour out my Spirit upon my Servants and upon my handmaids and in those days they shall prophesy.

–Acts 2: 16-18, ARA

These signs and miracles are to be noticed, not brushed aside. This is the Holy One speaking to us in heavenly riddles in the night. We all have dreams. Sometimes we may not remember our dreams, but if there is something of great importance, The Holy One will bring it back to us or at times, He may even have someone else dream a dream to encourage or warn us of a future event.

 Since the beginning of the book, we read of dreams. We just read in Joel 2, repeated in Acts 2, The Father promised to pour His Spirit on all flesh in the last days, and He is not a man that He should lie. Angels appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. They had dreams, visions, and heard and conversed with Yahweh. How much more should we be conversing, listening, and receiving messages at night and during the day?  Other people, at times, have dreams for us or with us. My husband and I often have dreams that interlock or connect. Families are dreaming about other family members too. In my own family, we watched my son and his wife struggle to get pregnant for years and deal with much pain. One night my niece’s son woke up and said, “By the way, I dreamt Becca (My Daughter-in-law) is pregnant.” Later, the doctors confirmed my daughter-in-law was indeed pregnant just weeks after this young man’s dream. That was over four years ago, and a new baby arrived today (2/7/2022). HalleluYah!

I want to share a dream or two with you from 2012/2013. My husband and I kept a journal of dreams from that time. One or two entries made me think about the power of dreams and how they are not just for us at times but possibly for others. Sometimes if we don’t tell others our dreams and keep them to ourselves, we are doing a disservice to the kingdom! What if Joseph never heard about the seven skinny cows who ate the fat cows? Well, you get my point, hopefully. On the flip side, many times our dreams are personal and should not be shared with just anyone, but those who have earned that space with us. 

The first dream I want to share is one from December 2012. Yes, quite a bit ago.

In my dream, I had received a considerable sized manila envelope in the mail with my medical records in it. My husband, Jeff, had brought the envelope in from work, and as I was reading what the doctors had written about me, I noticed they had written untrue things, and some of them were comments that implied I had mental issues or that I had faked my illnesses. Even my family history was wrong. In the dream I had laid the papers on a prayer bench by our bed and was kneeling beside it reading. The dream switched, and it was no longer the doctor’s records I was reading but pastors and one woman who had written things about my character that was not nice at all. The Father showed me that the doctors’ mistakes were also the mindset of some people who had recently entered my life.

They were looking at me and dissecting me wrong. We as people often do this unawares. 

I was crying and showing my husband the medical reports in my dream. He looked at me and said, “Do you know what I am going to do about all this? “I said, “What?” He then took his body, fully dressed, and laid on top of me like Elisha, who stretched himself out on top of the child and brought healing. His arms and legs outstretched over mine, and our fingers interlocked.

Then he stretched himself upon the child three times and cried to the LORD, “O LORD my God, let this child’s life come into him again.” And the LORD listened to the voice of Elijah. And the life of the child came into him again, and he revived.

I Kings 17:21-22, ESV

That evening in real-time, my husband walked through the door carrying a manila envelope. He said, look, your medical records are here. Can you say Deja Vu? My eyes enlarged as my dream came back to me. I opened the envelope, and it was just like my dream. I began to share my complete dream with my husband, and we prayed, and he prayed that, just like my dream, that he would be a covering for me. Both of us knew that our heavenly Father was our covering, but also that my husband needed to be watchful. My husband proceeded to do what he did in my dream. He laid on top of me and we stretched out and held hands and prayed.

That night, in real-time, there was a banquet, prizes, music, and celebration with many leaders present. The evening played out with several whispers and stares, uncomfortable situations that possibly were due to my husband being single for 12 years. I was new, and some were not used to this new man or his love for his new bride. The main person in my dream was getting very upset with my husband. Words were exchanged that were not pleasant, and after he brought me home, he went back to help clean up the party room and apologize. He ended up making things right that night, but look at how the dream played out in real-time? Shortly after this dream, my husband took me to Mayo Clinic, and they gave us validation that it was not in my mind and that I was completely sane. They also diagnosed some of my issues. Also, later, he straightened out all the errors in my medical records. What a blessing my husband has been.

But my question to you, Dear Reader, is, have you experienced this? First the natural, then the spiritual. Our dreams play out in the natural at times. Sometimes, it takes much longer for the dreams to start playing out. Sometimes the symbols are not as revealing. Let’s say you dreamt of a beehive hanging in your kitchen and several days later someone brings you honey or sends you an article on bees. Be watchful of the natural. The Lord asked Jeremiah, “What do you see?” He was looking at an almond tree blossom.

When my husband was Chief of police, the mayor dreamed about me. That same night my husband and I both had dreams. All the dreams went together, and all the dreams were warnings. I write about some of these types of experiences in my book The Spirit of Leviathan, Jezebel, and Athaliah. 

I want to share one more dream example:

Around a year after my husband (associate pastor/ evangelist) and I wed, we felt led to step down from our ministry positions and continue learning more about the Hebraic roots of our faith. This stepping down did not sit well with many in our assemblies. Although we tried to use integrity and meet with the senior pastor, many things were misconstrued. When we stepped down, some thought we would start our own congregation. Which was the last thing on our minds as we knew we were to sit down for a season and unlearn and relearn many things, but our departure was met with unpleasantries. We later received phone calls from leaders of other assemblies implying things that were not true– Things suggesting we were causing a split or were opening a congregation to steal sheep. All sorts of nonsense and slander concerning our persons became evident and brought us much grief. As we prayed over the situation, the congregation was sold, and the assembly was now meeting in a storefront strip mall building. We no longer attended and felt the strangeness of the path the Holy One was taking us on, but we were still grieved over many things and continued to pray for the congregation. At first, we had tried to share what we were learning, but this was not received. 

One day my brother called us and wanted to share a dream he had. He knew nothing of the situation or the sale of the building and new relocation. 

He said I dreamt that I had arrived at a strip mall with a large pane glass window, where a church service was being held. You, Jeff, and Bonnie (Tekoa) were in a car in the parking lot. You were standing by your vehicle but did not go inside. I, however, went into the assembly and had a seat. A lady with very short-shaven hair stood up and started to lousy mouth both of you. Another joined in talking about you both until someone else stood up and said, “You need to watch what you say, and there is Bonnie’s brother and Jeff’s brother-in-law sitting right there. The woman immediately looked shocked and sat down, and a hush fell over the room.

Through my brother’s dream, the Father let us know that he was aware of the slander and sent brothers/sisters in the faith to correct those who were slandering. We did not need to fight our battles but remained steadfast in prayer. Finally, closure and healing could take place. 

As time moves forward swiftly, knowledge increases and social media speeds up, many are hypnotized by TikTok or quick videos, the fast-paced life of work, children, and deadlines, but the God of Heaven is waking us up in more ways than one. He is getting our attention and using our dreams in this Joel 2 period to shake us and also for a witness to how Real He is and how powerful He is. “After this, I will pour my Ruach! And He is. Daughter of the Most High, He is not a man who should lie.

Blessings,

Tekoa Manning