I Have A Dream

Joel 2:28 – Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. (also Acts 2:17)

Despite all the blatant commercialism of the centennial Olympic Games, few could be unmoved by the spectacular opening ceremony with its multi-media variations of "the power of a dream" theme. The audio/video clip of Martin Luther King's famous 1963 "I have a dream" speech came as a vivid reminder of the power of a dream to transform society, even in the Deep South. While many fear that the Olympic dream is almost drowned in a sea of Coca-Cola, the sight of athletes from Israel and (for the first time) from Palestine marching into the same stadium to participate in peaceful competition provided a glimpse of that dream and what it might help to bring about.

Joel foresaw a time when God's Spirit would be poured out so that young and old alike would dream dreams and see visions. For Peter, that time dawned with the Christ event and the giving of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost. Without distinction of sex, age or social standing, people were drawn into a new community and enabled to dream dreams. Do we have a vision for our personal lives? our local congregation? our community? our world? Can we say, "I have a dream"? With the help of God's Word and God's Spirit, we can.