Justin and Joan

God speaks.
Really. He does.

However, sometimes He speaks through different means. Whether it be through a song or a dream or a friend or with an actual voice from above, He communicates with us. The question then is: are we listening?

Lately, I have been watching the episodes from the first season of a TV show called Joan of Arcadia. Joan of Arcadia is a show about a teenage girl who meets a person who claims to be God. This sounds a little off, I know. The cool thing is that whenever God tells Joan to do something and Joan obeys--everything works out for the better. It's really a neat show because Joan always tries to figure out why she has to do all these little tasks for Him. Sometimes she doesn't find out. The important aspect is this: she tries to find instruction by using the hidden messages that God has provided her.

What does this have to do with anything?

I have a person that is so dear to me who is not saved. I know that many people say, "Why is that such an issue--that they are saved?" It's just important to me, okay? I still love them under every circumstance. But I wish they knew the grace that I have experienced. It's more peaceful and joyful than a person can imagine.

Anyway, I have this person with whom I am very close. I have been talking to her and witnessing to her through my life and listening to her point of view for quite some time now. No matter who you are, if you have something happening in your life that just doesn't seem to be moving forward, you are going to get discouraged. Last week, I was feeling pretty discouraged about this situation.

My friend about which I am speaking has left me to go to a place across the country for a while. In the dream that I had, there was a part when she came back and was showing me scripture verses that she had found... in her Bible. It was a really cool dream because it was something that I have been working towards for SO LONG. It was a long dream, though, because there were a series of things that happened in it. For instance, there was a short clip of a Justin Bieber song at one point. Quite honestly, I don't remember which song was playing. All that I remember is that there was a Justin Bieber song in my dream. That's pretty odd.

I woke up the next day with the disappointing realization that the dream was not reality. I prayed for my friend once again, and this time, I heard an actual voice. The voice said something along the lines of, "I have spoken to you through that dream. Pay attention!" Well. Okay! I'll try to pay attention :)

That afternoon, I headed out to Pierre, SD to go camping with my family. I plugged my iPod into my ears, and eventually a Justin Bieber song came on the playlist. The song was called "Pray."

Well. It all makes sense now.

I had a dream where my dear person-I-know became totally engrossed with God. The Justin Bieber song that I connected with later talks about praying for the hard times (and happy times) in life. God spoke through Justin Bieber. Hard to believe, right? My problem has been that I have been working towards this goal. In actuality, I need to abdicate my plans to a higher power. I need to have faith that God will take care of all of those who I love.

God has made Himself real to me.
It's kind of a bummer that others are hesitant to turn their faces.