The dreams that I dream-17- A dead rat

Ever experienced deadness in your family life, married life or your spiritual life? Nothing seems to give joy anymore. Relationships are strained and at the point of rupture. You know something is wrong but you don't know what to do about it. A silent confusion. Just the minimal talk between you and your spouse or between you and other family members.

I think we all go through this once in a while but when it stays for long, we must be aware that the enemy is at work. Jesus said, "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. " (John 10:10) This fulness of life is what the enemy often tries to steal.

Some years back, this is exactly what the enemy tried to do in my married life. For a few weeks, my relationship with my wife seemed to be strained in many ways. There was no particular cause, but the quietness was very palpable. The talks were minimal and regarding day to day needs; no real lasting peace, joy and togetherness that the Lord gives. It was unusual because our prayer and worship life was on the upward surge and we were having success doing the Lord's work.

During this problematic phase in our life, when we were quite exasperated because of the deadness in our family life, one night the Lord showed me a dream which made me realize how subtly the enemy works. It was just a short dream, but enough for me to realize the truth. I saw a crow flying from far off towards me while I was standing near a well and as it neared me, I saw it having a dead rat held in its beak. Coming near me, it just dropped the dead rat into the well and flew away.

Some of the dreams that I see amuse me and this was one of them, but later when I thought about it seriously, I understood what the Lord was telling me here. The dream just indicated the enemy's tactics of dropping deadness into our family life (crow dropping dead rat into our well). Rebuking the evil powers which were the cause for this problem in our life effected a deliverance almost immediately and we were able to enjoy the fullness of life that Jesus desires to give each one of us, His children.

Some of the problems in our life may seem trivial and we may not realize that our enemy, the devil is at work. But the Bible exhorts us to be "watchful" and praying at all times. And that is what we must be always doing.