This post was last updated on April 5, 2026

Day 11 (Year 2)

Seeking the Illumination of Christ

… “Therefore He says: ‘Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, And Christ will give you light.'” (Ephesians 5:14 NKJV)

I want to share a dream that came to me in 2009, which bears directly on the interpretation of the verse above. At the beginning of the dream, I found myself in a dim but spacious dungeon. I could see various people lying on different beds, and above each of them was something like a wall. At first, each wall was covered with more than a hundred rectangular bricks, engraved with different things: large sums of money, material pursuits such as luxury cars, and various worldly achievements.

As I walked in a certain direction through the dungeon, I continued to see people lying down, but the number of bricks on the walls above them grew fewer and fewer — some had only thirty or fewer. For those sleeping beneath fewer bricks, the space around them was greater. They had room to turn freely, and even to get up easily. There happened to be a small fountain before me, with a slender jet of water rising from the centre of a stone-carved, funnel-shaped basin, just enough to wash a person’s face. In the dream, I walked to the fountain. After washing my face, I noticed a sloping path leading upward. Upon climbing it, I discovered that what lay above the dungeon was a wide, open meadow, bathed in brilliant sunshine. On the grassland, I found a small number of people scattered here and there, joyfully sharing the warmth of the sun with me.

When I woke up, the verse above came to mind. The people in the dream had chosen to sleep, and the very things they were pursuing were pressing down upon them as a crushing weight. The more they pursued, the less room they had to move freely. The dungeon can be understood as the place where the dead lie, as the verse describes. In the dimness, each person lying there resembled someone lying in a hospital with a coma. They thought they possessed much, yet in reality, they were bound by the very things they were chasing after. The fountain represented the Word of God and the work of the Holy Spirit. All they needed to do was leave their beds, rise, and walk to the fountain to wash their faces to see the way out that led to the meadow. God’s Word and the Holy Spirit have the power to awaken anyone. The true light of Christ shines like the sun over all the earth, bringing forth life and vitality. Those walking in the meadow moved about with great freedom. If this vision speaks to you, and you sense the call of Christ, then respond to Him now without delay.

Reflection questions:

1) Do you feel that the things you pursue have become a heavy burden upon you, or even a form of bondage? If so, how would you rely on the Lord to deal with what weighs you down?

2) Are you willing to receive the Word of God and the work of the Holy Spirit in abundance, so that you may be awakened and continually receive the illumination of Christ?