Everybody’s Looking for Something

 

In this dream I have a behind-the-scenes look at an elaborate stage production. The Mistress of Ceremonies wants the costume designer to make her an “original” gown, but she wants him to copy a fashion she saw on Project Runway. It is an Erte style, Art Deco black dress, with a bandeau bra top, straps leading to a halter neck and choker, long crepe skirt, bare midriff with fabric strips connecting the top and skirt, and long black gloves with vertical slits allowing the skin to show through.

The final result is chic and dramatic, but she doesn’t want the audience to know she has stolen someone else’s design. She asks me to find her makeup tray, so I look inside a 1920’s style vanity, but it is filled only with cassette tapes and a recorder. I accidentally start the recorder playing and can’t shut it off. The song is a 1920’s tune that apparently accompanied the model on Project Runway when she showed the original design. The MC is furious because she thinks the audience will make the connection to her gown’s true origins.  

The dream then fast forwards to the final scene of the play, which is set like the Victorian drawing room in the Nutcracker ballet, ready for a lavish Christmas celebration. After the characters parade around and exchange not-so-pleasantries, the MC announces that the world is about to end, and this is their last chance to hold onto what is most important to them.

The final tableau shows each character worshipping their god, pledging their allegiance to what they hold most dear. A middle-aged woman who has parlayed her physical charms into a wealthy but loveless marriage and equally empty affairs draws close to her reflection in a full-length mirror. Her husband reaches lustfully for the young maid, who has her hands in the silver drawer.

The learned professor gets on one knee in a courtly pose and extends his arms to the bookshelf, as if he could encompass all the science, poetry, and philosophy contained in its volumes. While the athlete contorts his muscular frame into a manly expression of physical prowess, the obese glutton stuffs his face at the buffet, and the addict snorts his stash of cocaine. The children grab as many presents as they can, shoving each other aside, and run to the fireplace, peering up into the chimney and hoping they can get more from Santa.

A priest, who was invited to pray before the meal, piously holds his rosary in one hand and his censer in the other, looking upward to heaven yet hoping a crowd will kneel at his feet. Meanwhile, a beggar out in the cold, nearing the threshold in hopes of a few scraps discarded from the sumptuous dinner, flings himself prostrate on the ground and begs God for mercy and forgiveness.

I awoke with the realization that only the beggar, who realized he was a sinner in need of a Savior, would spend eternity in Heaven with Jesus Christ, and that the idol worshippers would all be cast into the lake of fire (Ephesians 5:5; Revelation 20:15;21:8)..

The pattern of the black dress reminded me of a “map” Todd Friel drew on an episode of the Wretched TV show, with the skirt representing the lake of fire, the top representing the “Devil’s Pond,” and the slits on the gloves, straps, and fabric pieces representing the tributaries feeding into the pond and ultimately into the lake of fire. He explained that Satan lures souls to follow the current into these various tributaries and rivers of worldly thought leading to destruction, including sexual immorality, substance abuse, humanism, atheism, pagan worship, and works-based religions.

In the dream, the dress design was stolen but masqueraded as an original creation. Satan is the great deceiver and the father of all lies (John 8:44), and in his desire to be God he imitates Him, from the unholy trinity to his distortion of God’s Word, seen first in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:1-5) and not ending permanently until he is cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:10) . But all evil deeds are recorded and made known (Mark 4:22; Luke 8:17; (Ephesians 5:11-13), and those who rejected God and His Son will answer to Christ when He reads their sins from the books He keeps (Revelation 20:12).

Except for the beggar, all of the characters in this dream staked their eternal destiny on something other than faith in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ as the only way to Heaven (1 Corinthians 15:1-4; John 14:6). The “Christmas” celebration failed to honor Christ, Who came in the flesh (John 1:14) to reconcile sinful man to Holy God (2 Corinthians 5:18-19; Hebrews 2:17). Instead, it glorified the false gods of this world as the celebrants stumbled into Satan’s traps of the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life (1 John 2:16).

Falling prey to the lust of the flesh were the drug abuser and the glutton. The middle-aged beauty succumbed to the lust of the eyes as well as the lust of the flesh, worshipping her own image while seeking confirmation of her desirability in meaningless sexual encounters. Her husband, who should have been the spiritual leader of the household (Ephesians 5:23-26), was no better. Small wonder that they had neglected their parental responsibilities of spiritual guidance, and that their greedy children were following in their parents’ footsteps !

Also attempting to satisfy the lust of the eyes and the pride of life was the maid, as those who crave wealth do so for the lovely things it buys as well as for the power linked to prestige and worldly success (1 Timothy 6:10). And the athlete placed his faith in his physical strength and accomplishments to win the respect of others (1 Corinthians 9:25). But we are saved by God’s grace alone, and not by our own works, no matter how impressive (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Thinking himself to be wise by embracing all the world’s writings, the professor proved himself to be a fool, as the world’s “wisdom” is no match for God’s Word. Trusting in evolution and humanism as absolute truth deceives men from realizing their own sinful nature and leads them to deny God’s very existence (Romans 1:21-25; Psalm 14:1; 53:1).

One would hope that the priest would be a better role model than the other characters in this morality play, but he too counted on his own works and self-righteousness (Luke 18:10-14) Vain repetitions in prayer, without speaking to God as a child approaches their Father (Matthew 6:7-9) for wisdom, advice, and loving guidance and provision, are meaningless works. Even worse, he pretended to be worshipping God while seeking only admiration and reverence from others (Matthew 6:1-5), which made him a false prophet and teacher whose only god was himself ((Matthew 7:15;:2 Peter 2:1).

Far outnumbered by those who tried to enter eternity by the broad gate leading to destruction was the beggar. Sadly, those who have been born again (John 3:3-8) and accept Jesus Christ as the only Way, Truth and Life (John 14:6) are in the minority, and even Jesus said that His way is narrow (Matthew 7:13-14). May we renounce our false gods, repent of our sins, and trust in Him to lead us to eternal life!

Everyone is looking for something, but even in this life, nothing satisfies other than a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Only He brings joy, peace and abundant life here and now, and unimaginable, everlasting joy and peace in His presence in Heaven. May we tell all we encounter of His goodness and of the satisfaction only He can give!

© 2013 Laurie Collett

Reposted from the archives

Planet Hugs

Photo by Edwin Soo 2012

A dream I had recently whisked me away to the fantasy destination of Planet Hugs. In this dream, I was on a sightseeing trip, walking through a large city, when off in the distance a large, globe-shaped structure seemed to be beckoning to me. It looked like an interesting place to visit, and what would be the harm in wandering in?

But once I was in the lobby, the imposing steel gates locked behind me. A polite but stern guard informed me that I should have read the sign posted on the door. The building was not open for tours, but only for filming of a reality TV show, and by entering I had in effect agreed to a contract to participate. Funny that I hadn’t seen any such sign, but being in the show sounded intriguing and might even make me rich and famous, I convinced myself.

“Planet Hugs,” hosted by Tim Gunn, appeared to be a cross between Project Runway and the Apprentice. We were assigned to teams, each with the mission to design, complete, and market a creative project. A woman on my team suggested a project of questionable taste that was not at all appealing to me, but Tim liked it, and he asked me to write up the proposal. I hesitantly agreed, wanting to be a team player and not wanting to be the first one fired, but disliking the project and not wanting to be associated with the woman’s ideas.

The woman immediately responded by ranting and raving, accusing me of stealing her plan and screaming nasty names at me, with others soon joining in the tirade. Tim suggested that the team cool down by taking off the rest of the evening and exploring Planet Hugs.

Although disturbed by the unsavory project and wounded by my team’s rejection of me, I was quickly distracted by all that Planet Hugs had to offer. The panoramic view of the surrounding city was breathtaking, as the entire top half of the globe was glass, supported only by thin ribs of steel. Brilliantly lit skyscrapers flashed like light sabers, and streets and rivers crisscrossed below in an electrifying array.

But the truly unique feature of Planet Hugs was the “floor.”  One could hardly call it that, as underfoot was a shifting sea of what felt like massage heads suspended in memory foam! After all the walking and emotional turmoil of this unusual adventure, it felt wonderful to lie down, to let my knotted muscles relax into that foam and feel the tension drift away.

At least initially. To my dismay, the gentle motion of the memory foam beneath me swelled in intensity until I was completely enveloped in smothering waves that covered even my head, suffocating me in what felt like a giant vat of dough being mechanically kneaded.

I awoke and sat up in a panic, but the sensations of air freely filling my lungs and the floor beside my bed firmly supporting my feet were a great relief. As I thought about the dream, I realized how easy and dangerous it is to be enticed by what the world seems to offer.

Seldom are there signs warning us to keep out, and if we get enticed by what lies within, the signs may be easy to ignore (Proverbs 1:10-19). The very name of Planet Hugs was a lie from Satan, the father of lies (John 8:44), as the pretense of kindly affection and bodily comfort was merely a disguise for verbal and physical attack.

Since the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:6), Satan has used three lures to draw us into sin and away from God’s plan: the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life (1 John 2:16). Planet Hugs seemed to offer a view out of this world, the constant availability of soothing massage, and the opportunity for fame and fortune, but all it delivered was strife, fear, and ultimately death (Romans 6:23).

We must therefore guard our feet against taking us into wicked places (Psalm 1:1), our minds against conforming to the world (Romans 12:2), and our hearts against any idol that would keep us from Him (Psalm 119:11; 141:4). We must be vigilant to avoid the devil’s attacks (1 Peter 5:8) by putting on the whole armor of God and recognizing that the battle is not against flesh and blood, but against spiritual wickedness in high places (Ephesians 6:11-18).

If we are double-minded, trying to please and follow the world and God at the same time, we will be unstable in all our ways, tossed about in the churning waves of doubt and unbelief (James 1:6-8; Genesis 49:4). There is no stability in building our lives on the world’s promises, which are sinking sand leading only to destruction (Luke 6:48-49). Instead we must build our lives on the only sure foundation (Psalm 87:1), Jesus Christ Who is the Rock (1 Corinthians 10:4) and the precious Corner Stone (Psalm 118:22, Isaiah 28:16; Matthew 21:42; Mark 12:10; Luke 20:17; Acts 4:11; Ephesians 2:20; 1 Peter 2:6-7).

Believers stand firmly on His promise of Heaven through faith in His death, burial and resurrection as the only Way (1 Corinthians 15:1-4; John 14:6), but even we must be careful to build wisely, and not foolishly, on that foundation. What we do to increase our standing in or acceptance by the world will burn up at His judgment like hay, wood, and stubble, but whatever we do to His glory with the desire to please Him and serve others will remain, like gold, silver and precious jewels withstanding the refiner’s fire (1 Corinthians 3:10-15).

We don’t need hugs from the world if we are firmly held in the loving, secure, double grip of Jesus Christ and God the Father! (John 10:28-29) May we keep on the right path (Psalm 119:105) leading to His perfect will for our lives!

© 2013 Laurie Collett
Reposted from the archives

Everybody’s Looking for Something

In this dream I have a behind-the-scenes look at an elaborate stage production. The Mistress of Ceremonies wants the costume designer to make her an “original” gown, but she wants him to copy a fashion she saw on Project Runway. It is an Erte style, Art Deco black dress, with a bandeau bra top, straps leading to a halter neck and choker, long crepe skirt, bare midriff with fabric strips connecting the top and skirt, and long black gloves with vertical slits allowing the skin to show through.

The final result is chic and dramatic, but she doesn’t want the audience to know she has stolen someone else’s design. She asks me to find her makeup tray, so I look inside a 1920’s style vanity, but it is filled only with cassette tapes and a recorder. I accidentally start the recorder playing and can’t shut it off. The song is a 1920’s tune that apparently accompanied the model on Project Runway when she showed the original design. The MC is furious because she thinks the audience will make the connection to her gown’s true origins.  

The dream then fast forwards to the final scene of the play, which is set like the Victorian drawing room in the Nutcracker ballet, ready for a lavish Christmas celebration. After the characters parade around and exchange not-so-pleasantries, the MC announces that the world is about to end, and this is their last chance to hold onto what is most important to them.

The final tableau shows each character worshipping their god, pledging their allegiance to what they hold most dear. A middle-aged woman who has parlayed her physical charms into a wealthy but loveless marriage and equally empty affairs draws close to her reflection in a full-length mirror. Her husband reaches lustfully for the young maid, who has her hands in the silver drawer.

The learned professor gets on one knee in a courtly pose and extends his arms to the bookshelf, as if he could encompass all the science, poetry, and philosophy contained in its volumes. While the athlete contorts his muscular frame into a manly expression of physical prowess, the obese glutton stuffs his face at the buffet, and the addict snorts his stash of cocaine. The children grab as many presents as they can, shoving each other aside, and run to the fireplace, peering up into the chimney and hoping they can get more from Santa.

A priest, who was invited to pray before the meal, piously holds his rosary in one hand and his censer in the other, looking upward to heaven yet hoping a crowd will kneel at his feet. Meanwhile, a beggar out in the cold, nearing the threshold in hopes of a few scraps discarded from the sumptuous dinner, flings himself prostrate on the ground and begs God for mercy and forgiveness.

I awoke with the realization that only the beggar, who realized he was a sinner in need of a Savior, would spend eternity in Heaven with Jesus Christ, and that the idol worshippers would all be cast into the lake of fire (Ephesians 5:5; Revelation 20:15;21:8)..

The pattern of the black dress reminded me of a “map” Todd Friel drew on a recent episode of the Wretched TV show, with the skirt representing the lake of fire, the top representing the “Devil’s Pond,” and the slits on the gloves, straps, and fabric pieces representing the tributaries feeding into the pond and ultimately into the lake of fire. He explained that Satan lures souls to follow the current into these various tributaries and rivers of worldy thought leading to destruction, including sexual immorality, substance abuse, humanism, atheism, pagan worship, and works-based religions.

In the dream, the dress design was stolen but masqueraded as an original creation. Satan is the great deceiver and the father of all lies (John 8:44), and in his desire to be God he imitates Him, from the unholy trinity to his distortion of God’s Word, seen first in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:1-5) and not ending permanently until he is cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:10) . But all evil deeds are recorded and made known (Mark 4:22; Luke 8:17; (Ephesians 5:11-13), and those who rejected God and His Son will answer to Christ when He reads their sins from the books He keeps (Revelation 20:12).

Except for the beggar, all of the characters in this dream staked their eternal destiny on something other than faith in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ as the only way to Heaven (1 Corinthians 15:1-4; John 14:6). The “Christmas” celebration failed to honor Christ, Who came in the flesh (John 1:14) to reconcile sinful man to Holy God (2 Corinthians 5:18-19; Hebrews 2:17). Instead, it glorified the false gods of this world as the celebrants stumbled into Satan’s traps of the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life (1 John 2:16).

Falling prey to the lust of the flesh were the drug abuser and the glutton. The middle-aged beauty succumbed to the lust of the eyes as well as the lust of the flesh, worshipping her own image while seeking confirmation of her desirability in meaningless sexual encounters. Her husband, who should have been the spiritual leader of the household (Ephesians 5:23-26), was no better. Small wonder that they had neglected their parental responsibilities of spiritual guidance, and that their greedy children were following in their parents’ footsteps !

Also attempting to satisfy the lust of the eyes and the pride of life was the maid, as those who crave wealth do so for the lovely things it buys as well as for the power linked to prestige and worldly success (1 Timothy 6:10). And the athlete placed his faith in his physical strength and accomplishments to win the respect of others (1 Corinthians 9:25). But we are saved by God’s grace alone, and not by our own works, no matter how impressive (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Thinking himself to be wise by embracing all the world’s writings, the professor proved himself to be a fool, as the world’s “wisdom” is no match for God’s Word. Trusting in evolution and humanism as absolute truth deceives men from realizing their own sinful nature and leads them to deny God’s very existence (Romans 1:21-25; Psalm 14:1; 53:1).

One would hope that the priest would be a better role model than the other characters in this morality play, but he too counted on his own works and self-righteousness (Luke 18:10-14) Vain repetitions in prayer, without speaking to God as a child approaches their Father (Matthew 6:7-9) for wisdom, advice, and loving guidance and provision, are meaningless works. Even worse, he pretended to be worshipping God while seeking only admiration and reverence from others (Matthew 6:1-5), which made him a false prophet and teacher whose only god was himself ((Matthew 7:15;:2 Peter 2:1).

Far outnumbered by those who entered eternity by the broad gate leading to destruction was the beggar. Sadly, those who have been born again (John 3:3-8) and accept Jesus Christ as the only Way, Truth and Life (John 14:6) are in the minority, and even Jesus said that His way is narrow (Matthew 7:13-14). May we renounce our false gods, repent of our sins, and trust in Him to lead us to eternal life!

Everyone is looking for something, but even in this life, nothing satisfies other than a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Only He brings joy, peace and abundant life here and now, and unimaginable, everlasting joy and peace in His presence in Heaven. May we tell all we encounter of His goodness and of the satisfaction only He can give!

© 2013 Laurie Collett

 

Planet Hugs

A dream I had recently whisked me away to the fantasy destination of Planet Hugs. In this dream, I was on a sightseeing trip, walking through a large city, when off in the distance a large, globe-shaped structure seemed to be beckoning to me. It looked like an interesting place to visit, and what would be the harm in wandering in?

But once I was in the lobby, the imposing steel gates locked behind me. A polite but stern guard informed me that I should have read the sign posted on the door. The building was not open for tours, but only for filming of a reality TV show, and by entering I had in effect agreed to a contract to participate. Funny that I hadn’t seen any such sign, but being in the show sounded intriguing and might even make me rich and famous, I convinced myself.

“Planet Hugs,” hosted by Tim Gunn, appeared to be a cross between Project Runway and the Apprentice. We were assigned to teams, each with the mission to design, complete, and market a creative project. A woman on my team suggested a project of questionable taste that was not at all appealing to me, but Tim liked it, and he asked me to write up the proposal. I hesitantly agreed, wanting to be a team player and not wanting to be the first one fired, but disliking the project and not wanting to be associated with the woman’s ideas.

The woman immediately responded by ranting and raving, accusing me of stealing her plan and screaming nasty names at me, with others soon joining in the tirade. Tim suggested that the team cool down by taking off the rest of the evening and exploring Planet Hugs.

Although disturbed by the unsavory project and wounded by my team’s rejection of me, I was quickly distracted by all that Planet Hugs had to offer. The panoramic view of the surrounding city was breathtaking, as the entire top half of the globe was glass, supported only by thin ribs of steel. Brilliantly lit skyscrapers flashed like light sabers, and streets and rivers crisscrossed below in an electrifying array.

But the truly unique feature of Planet Hugs was the “floor.”  One could hardly call it that, as underfoot was a shifting sea of what felt like massage heads suspended in memory foam! After all the walking and emotional turmoil of this unusual adventure, it felt wonderful to lie down, to let my knotted muscles relax into that foam and feel the tension drift away.

At least initially. To my dismay, the gentle motion of the memory foam beneath me swelled in intensity until I was completely enveloped in smothering waves that covered even my head, suffocating me in what felt like a giant vat of dough being mechanically kneaded.

I awoke and sat up in a panic, but the sensations of air freely filling my lungs and the floor beside my bed firmly supporting my feet were a great relief. As I thought about the dream, I realized how easy and dangerous it is to be enticed by what the world seems to offer.

Seldom are there signs warning us to keep out, and if we get enticed by what lies within, the signs may be easy to ignore (Proverbs 1:10-19). The very name of Planet Hugs was a lie from Satan, the father of lies (John 8:44), as the pretense of kindly affection and bodily comfort was merely a disguise for verbal and physical attack.

Since the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:6), Satan has used three lures to draw us into sin and away from God’s plan: the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life (1 John 2:16). Planet Hugs seemed to offer a view out of this world, the constant availability of soothing massage, and the opportunity for fame and fortune, but all it delivered was strife, fear, and ultimately death (Romans 6:23).

We must therefore guard our feet against taking us into wicked places (Psalm 1:1), our minds against conforming to the world (Romans 12:2), and our hearts against any idol that would keep us from Him (Psalm 119:11; 141:4). We must be vigilant to avoid the devil’s attacks (1 Peter 5:8) by putting on the whole armor of God and recognizing that the battle is not against flesh and blood, but against spiritual wickedness in high places (Ephesians 6:11-18).

If we are double-minded, trying to please and follow the world and God at the same time, we will be unstable in all our ways, tossed about in the churning waves of doubt and unbelief (James 1:6-8; Genesis 49:4). There is no stability in building our lives on the world’s promises, which are sinking sand leading only to destruction (Luke 6:48-49). Instead we must build our lives on the only sure foundation (Psalm 87:1), Jesus Christ Who is the Rock (1 Corinthians 10:4) and the precious Corner Stone (Psalm 118:22, Isaiah 28:16; Matthew 21:42; Mark 12:10; Luke 20:17; Acts 4:11; Ephesians 2:20; 1 Peter 2:6-7).

Believers stand firmly on His promise of Heaven through faith in His death, burial and resurrection as the only Way (1 Corinthians 15:1-4; John 14:6), but even we must be careful to build wisely, and not foolishly, on that foundation. What we do to increase our standing in or acceptance by the world will burn up at His judgment like hay, wood, and stubble, but whatever we do to His glory with the desire to please Him and serve others will remain, like gold, silver and precious jewels withstanding the refiner’s fire (1 Corinthians 3:10-15).

We don’t need hugs from the world if we are firmly held in the loving, secure, double grip of Jesus Christ and God the Father! (John 10:28-29) May we keep on the right path (Psalm 119:105) leading to His perfect will for our lives!

© 2013 Laurie Collett