Memory Gem: “Your sons and daughters shall prophesy; your old men shall dream dreams” (Joel 2:28).
Several police officers in South Auckland New Zealand, were tired of having so much crime in their area. “What can we do to help change things?” they asked each other.
“What if we could give first-time criminals something to read that would help them make better choices in the future?” the senior sergeant asked. As the officers talked further, they came up with an idea for a magazine about criminals who’d given their lives to Jesus. They would call the magazine Crime 2 Christ. Everyone was excited about the idea for the new magazine, but their police department didn’t have enough money to fund this.
Then one night that same police sergeant had a strange dream. In the dream was a woman who was going to have a baby. Above the woman were written the words “Seventh-day Adventist.” Suddenly the sergeant awoke. I must write down what I’ve just dreamed, he told himself. After he’d written the dream, he went back to sleep.
The next morning at the police station the sergeant told the others what he thought the dream meant. “I believe the Seventh-day Adventist Church will ‘give birth’ to this magazine project,” he said.
“I’m a Seventh-day Adventist,” one of the officers said excitedly, “and I know of a local Adventist church that would be interested in helping!”
Soon the police sergeant met with Pastor Hurlow of the nearby Papatoetoe Seventh-day Adventist
Church. “Yes,” the pastor said with a smile, “we’d like to help with this magazine project.” But Pastor Hurlow explained that while the church would help with writing and other tasks, they couldn’t provide any money for the project.
The very next day a woman walked into the police station and asked to speak with the senior sergeant. When the man appeared, the woman said, “God sent me here. I don’t know why, but tell me what you are doing in the community.”
After the sergeant told her about the magazine project, the woman said, “Now I know why God sent me here to talk with you. We’d like to donate some money. I’ll go pray and talk to some people. Then we’ll get back with you.”
A few days later the woman returned to the police station. “I have NZ$10,000 ready for you to use on your magazine project,” she said with a smile. This was enough to print the first issue of the magazine! “Oh,” the woman added. “I also have more money for your next issue.”
The first issue of Crime 2 Christ included the story of Amos, a founding member of a huge gang called The Head Hunters, and a woman who went from a life of crime to following Jesus Christ. Many people have been baptized because they read something in Crime 2 Christ magazine that touched their heart.
When God gives someone a dream, He also helps to make it come true!*
*Story adapted from Andrew McChesney, “The Policeman’s Dream,” am.adventistmission.org.
Did you know?
The Bible says that dreams still play a role in prophecy. (See today’s Memory Gem.)
Since a prophet’s job may include more than telling the future, such as teaching, preaching, even dreaming, God might someday choose you to be a prophet—even if you can’t tell the future!
Think it through
- What are some ways to help know whether or not a person’s dream (or other special message) is really from God?
- Since the gift of prophecy can include teaching and preaching, are all teachers and preachers prophets? Why or why not?
- Many Christians believe the “Dark Day” of 1780 was a prophetic sign. (George Washington actually wrote about it.) Today some scientists say it was smoke from a Canadian forest fire that caused the Dark Day. Does this make a difference? Why or why not?
