Are You Ready?

Last night I had a very vivid and convoluted dream. I found myself a guest at a wedding.

I walked up upon this scene before the ceremony. It was to be held outside under a pavilion at a church but a large cloud moved in and a torrential downpour ensued. People went crazy trying to move everything into the church. They had not planned on rain, so chaos reigned, too. The pavilion was cleared and I followed the people into the church. I was astounded by what I saw. The Bridal party was in various stages of dress; no they weren’t indecent, just not ready in their wedding garb. I asked one of them when the wedding was supposed to start. I was told it was scheduled to start at two. It was almost four-thirty! I had been a wedding coordinator at one time and offered to help. The Bride accepted my offer but still made little effort to finish dressing. I finally grabbed one of the bridesmaids and asked why no one seemed concerned about not being ready. She said, “Oh, the Groom isn’t here yet.” I called out as she walked away, “Has anyone talked to him? Do they know when he’s coming?”  “No, but he’s coming, don’t worry. He’ll be here.” This astounded me, from my wedding experiences I knew people were not so nonchalant about the groom being late. A thing like that made people nervous.

I walked around trying to make sense of this church. It was not what one expects to see in a church. There was no real sanctuary to speak of, though the guest milled around the collage of junk stacked around. No halls with classrooms or offices either. It was as if it was compressed and distorted, more like a rabbit warren with twists a turns, often leading to nowhere. It looked to be used more for storage than a church.  Everywhere I looked, I saw some the wedding party jammed into a small space. They seemed in high spirits.

The confusion inside the church sent me outside for fresh air. The storm had passed; guest had left, though a few remained. I saw one of my sons, at the age of nine. He was dressed for a wedding but covered from head to toe in milk. He carried a gray plastic sword and had its sheath tied around his waist. He was doing battle with an imaginary enemy and his smile said he was winning. I asked how he came to be covered in milk. He didn’t know, he said, as he thrust his sword at his opponent.   

I didn’t say the dream made sense…..

I heard the wedding march start up and rushed inside, thankful they were finally started. People still milled around, nothing had changed. I located the Bride and asked if the Groom had arrived and she said he had not but she thought she needed to play music to entertain the remaining guest. I suggested we put on some other music and save the wedding march till he got there. She said she had not brought any other music, she didn’t think about needing it. That came as no surprise to me at this point. She commented that it was great to have the church since it rained and ruined her plans. I thought the Groom not being there would have been what ruined her plans, but no, she was perturbed by the rain.

The subdued chaos continued, people came and went in and out of the church. I remained perplexed by their nonchalant attitudes. They seemed intent on having a festive celebration regardless of how unprepared they were, groom or no groom.

As I was making my morning coffee, I was pondering the meaning of the whacky dream. Then it came, the ‘holy tap on the shoulder’, and in my spirit I heard; “Now you know why.” The whole dream flashed before my eyes again in a split moment. It all fell into place for me. The unprepared wedding party, the church stuffed with junk and out of order, the people determined to have a party without the Groom, the child drenched in milk fighting unseen enemies, yes, it all fell into place. Now it made sense. I thanked my Lord for the insight. 

As for the, “Now you know why”… I am dealing with a physical issue and didn’t get many consecutive minutes of sleep during the night but every time I woke up, the same song was running through my head...

                    “People get ready, Jesus is coming…”