“What Does It Mean?”
~Michelle Lores 2016~
A little
child stood lost and alone
With no home
to call his own.
He had no
father. He had no mother. He did not have a family.
But one
night came and changed everything.
It was the
night he took a journey.
He never
knew if he was asleep or awake—
He only knew
what he saw.
And in the
morning he just had to take
His
questions to one who would tell him the truth no matter what.
So he went
to the church and knocked on the door—
And who
there did he see?
An older man
with very kind eyes who said,
“Yes? Were you looking for me?”
Jakob, the
little lost boy,
So ragged
and all alone
Said, “Yes,
mister, if you please,
You see, I don’t
have a home,
“No mom, no
dad to talk to or ask
What things
mean,
So I’m
coming to you to see if you can tell me
The meaning
of my dream.”
Well, the
older man’s white eyebrows went up
At the
mention of a dream,
But his eyes
remained kind,
For he was
not mean.
“I tell you
what,” Pastor Jim said.
“I will
listen, and if I know the answer,
I will tell
you right away.
Then we can
get to know each other better.”
After Jakob
had agreed,
He began to
tell his dream.
He told everything
he saw—
And all that
he had seen.
“First I saw
an empty manger
On a starry
night—
And I
wondered:
‘What does
it mean?’
Next, I saw
an empty cross
And a dark
sky—
And I
wondered:
‘What does
it mean?’
Then I saw
an empty tomb
With a stone
rolled away—
And I
wondered:
‘What does
it mean?’
“Then I saw
a blue sky
With white
clouds and eleven men looking up at it—
And I
wondered:
‘What does
it mean?’
“And I saw a
white dove
And flames
of fire floating above men and women’s heads—
And I
wondered:
‘What does
this mean?’
“And then I
saw a lot of green—
Green grass
and green trees—
And I
wondered yet again:
‘What does
this mean?’
“And last of
all, I saw
A church
full of people—
And I
wondered:
‘What does
it mean?’
“Mister,”
Jakob said,
“Your church
was in my dream.
Can you tell
me—
O please can
you tell me what it all means?”
The older
man smiled
And looked
up to heaven.
For he saw
once again that God is truly amazing,
And he took
a moment to thank Him.
Then Pastor
Jim said,
“Yes, my son—you
see,
What you saw
is all about Jesus.
He has sent
you to me,
Because He
wants you to know Him,
And He wants
you to finally have a family.
Jesus came
from heaven—
He is the
Son of God,
He was born
to a woman by the power of the Holy Spirit
And laid in
a manger like you saw.
But He didn’t
stay there—
He grew up
and died for our sins
On a cruel
cross like you saw.
He was
blameless, and all our punishment was laid upon Him.
But he didn’t
stay dead.
Three days
later, He rose from the grave.
His tomb was
empty—just as you saw—
He rose from
the dead—us to save.
Then you saw
men—
Staring up
at the sky.
Jesus went
back to heaven,
To rule and
reign on High.
Then you saw
a white dove
And bright
flames of fire.
That was the
arrival of the Holy Spirit—
Jesus’
promised Helper.
Then you saw
a lot of green—
Everywhere
you looked.
That green
means growth that we all need.
That comes
from living the Truth of the Good Book.
Lastly, you
saw my church full of people—
And why are they
here?
Because they
love Jesus, they have been forgiven and saved by His grace,
And they are
now God’s family full of His love and His care.
“But how do
you be a part of that family?”
Jakob asked,
looking sad.
“I probably
wouldn’t count.
No one would
choose me—I’m too bad.”
“Son,”
Pastor Jim said.
“Jesus came
and died for YOU.
He took all
the bad things you’ve ever done upon Himself,
And bore the
punishment for them too.
“You see, my
dear child,
We all
deserve death,
But Jesus
came so we could have life
If we come
to Him to find rest.
“If we seek salvation
in Jesus, knowing He is the Son of God,
And we ask
for His forgiveness to make us clean,
He will save
us from everything we have done bad—
No matter
what we have seen.
“Then we
give our lives
To follow
Jesus as Lord.
We commit to
obey Him With the help of His Holy Spirit
And the Word
of God—our sword.
“Then we
become part of God’s family.
We are
baptized into a new life.
We now have
a Heavenly Father—
Who will be
with us in all good and all strife.”
“So, sir?” Jakob asked
As he dared
to look up.
“What must I
do
To belong to
such a One?”
“Believe.” Pastor Jim said.
“Believe in
your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead.
And confess.
Confess with
your mouth that
‘Jesus is
Lord,’
And you will
be saved.
“Ask for
forgiveness from God,
Turn from
your sin.
Be baptized.”
Said Pastor
Jim.
“Then LOVE Him
with all your heart.
If you do,
you will obey Him.
To believe
is to follow.
To love is
to obey and say no to sin.”
“I do
believe,” Jakob said
With a smile
on his face.
“Jesus is
Lord,
And I need
His grace.”
“How do I
ask Him to forgive me
And be Lord
of my life?”
“Through
prayer,” Pastor Jim said.
“Let’s talk
to Him now, for prayer is always good and right.”
So Jakob and
Pastor Jim
Prayed
together that day.
Jakob met
Jesus,
And Pastor
Jim led the way.
Jakob no
longer
Was lost and
alone.
He now had a
family
Who took
care of their own.
The family
was none other
Than God’s
loving church.
The family
of God,
Right here
on earth.
Are we doing
our part
As God’s
family
To reach out
to the hurting
And offer help
and God’s healing to all those in need?
