The Father’s Heart

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On August 25, 2024 the Lord spoke to me in a dream. I saw a few happy people standing in front of me. I felt the love of God around us and knew they were Christians. As if the Lord was standing right next to my right side, I heard Him say something like this, “Would you rather spend eternity in Heaven with a few wonderful people like these– or with a lot of them?” Then I woke up. I believe God was trying to show me the Father’s Heart!

This dream was an encounter with the Lord. When I woke up and talked with Him about the dream, I thought about the love and joy I experience when fellowshipping with believers in Christ.

Enlarge My Territory

And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, “Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!” So God granted him what he requested. 1 Chronicles 4:10. NKJV

The Bible says that Jabez was an honorable man– more honorable than his brothers and that the prayer he prayed pleased the Lord. So I believe it was an unselfish and loving prayer, full of desire to bless others. This is a prayer from the Father’s heart.

The first thing I sensed the Lord telling me about the dream was about the number of people I have personally influenced to come to a relationship with Jesus. When I get to Heaven, how many people will be there because I cared enough to tell them about the Lord? How can I “enlarge my territory?”

In The Beautiful Dream of 2013 my husband and I were seated on empty stadium bleachers. In part, this symbolizes that it is our joy and privilege to “fill our stadium” as we bring people to Jesus. We can enlarge our territory with joyful souls!

A Peggy Sims Parable

If Heaven has neighborhoods and our neighbors were the people we brought to Jesus, how big would my neighborhood be? The Bible doesn’t say that Heaven has neighborhoods, but Jesus did say that He was going to the Father and would prepare large dwelling places for us. The picture isn’t clear. But as a teaching parable (an earthly illustration of a Heavenly truth) can you imagine the joy of sharing eternity with those we brought to Jesus? With that perspective, I am praying about ways to share the Gospel of Jesus with others. I hope you are doing the same.

Love or Obligation?

A spirit of religion and dead works causes us to share the Gospel out of fear that God will punish us if we don’t. If we share the Gospel out of obligation our love has grown cold. But as we submit to the Spirit in prayer, He joins with us to drive out any evil that keeps us from yielding to the Father’s love. In that way, we do not bring pain to others, as Jabez prayed. Instead, we bring the Good News of Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit’s love. Some will reject us as they rejected Jesus, but others will receive the message and be saved for eternity!

The Father’s Heart

A couple of weeks after I dreamed The Beautiful Dream, the Father told me that He wanted me close to His heart. This has been a great motivation in my relationship with God. The Father wants all of us to have His heart!

God loves every person on earth with perfect and extravagant love! But He has planned for us to be the carriers of His love. When we draw close to the Father’s heart He always gives us a love for those who do not know the Savior– our family, neighbors and co-workers.

Love God’s Family

Secondly, if we want hearts like our Father in Heaven, we will love His children– our brothers and sisters in Christ. When we follow the Holy Spirit, we “put to death” any thought we have that is against a Brother or Sister and yield to God’s mercy and grace. We can grow in perfect love like our Father and enjoy Heaven on earth even in the midst of a fallen world.

In this dream, I felt the love and fellowship of the Spirit with my Brothers and Sisters. There was joy and peace that can only be given to us by the Holy Spirit.

The Blood of Jesus

It is the Blood of Jesus, shed for us on the cross that cleanses us from sin. None of us can take any credit for the spiritual life and growth we have obtained. Without Jesus’ sacrifice and resurrection, every one of us would be lost and dead in sin, so no one can boast in their own goodness.

Some of us, like me, have been slow to understand. But we forgive one another, pray for one another, weep with one another and rejoice together in all circumstances because we are a Family. We share God’s wonderful Spirit because of the Blood of Jesus.

The Spirit in Us Loves Extravagantly

So, this little dream asks another question. Do we limit who we love in the Body of Christ? Of course not! As we grow to love extravagantly like God our Father, our territory is enlarged!

When we live by the Spirit on earth, we are seated with God and our Brothers and Sisters at the same Table in the heavenly realms. We don’t have to wait until Heaven to love one another with a pure heart. In fact, our Father commands us to do so now. Let’s allow God to have His way on earth as it is in Heaven!

Prayer for the Father’s Heart

Bless us, Father, with Your heart of grace! Enlarge our territory that we may love those who don’t know you and those who do with your extravagant love! Holy Spirit, thank You for coming to dwell inside us. We ask you to drive out all evil that we may be filled to the fullness of the Father’s heart of mercy, love and grace! For Your glory and Your Kingdom we pray in Jesus name, Amen!