Thank you for reading my little “dream” stories.

These stories originate from what my father taught me: that with whatever you have struggled with in your life and God helped you with – or whatever you are currently struggling with in your life and God is helping you with – then God will place others in your path that are suffering the same thing. You will now have experience that will help them, and your compassionate Christian duty is to help them – to give to them what was given to you. Moreover, your experience means you understand them and their pain, because you have lived that pain. They can trust that you speak the truth.

These “dreams” start with the phrases people use to describe their lives when they need help: “stuck in the mud,” “lost in the dark and unable to see,” “broken and shattered,” “lost in a maze,” nothing left – “consumed in a fire – burnt away,” and “adrift” in an ocean or river (not written yet).

The stories are allegories that use the vehicle of dreams to “hand wave” the non-literalness of the descriptions. In a way, they illustrate a definition of compassion: seeing your pain (previous or current) in someone else’s eyes and not being okay with it, saying, “No. No one should be made to suffer what I had to suffer. Let me help you. I know a way out of this mess.”

In some Christian circles, this is known as “The Wounded Healer” – one who can help heal, because they’ve suffered that exact wound.

— Stuck in the Mud

I had a dream.

And in this dream, I was stuck, trapped, in thick mud. I was sinking – deeper and deeper.

Everything I did made me sink deeper. It was up to my neck, and I couldn’t escape.

With my hand extended above me, reaching out for what was not there, I cried out in distress. My head dropped in defeat. I was going to drown.

To my surprise, a strong hand grabbed mine. I jerked my head up to find my hand clasped by another, one who’s other hand grasped the hand of a brightly glowing person.

This unexpected person, knee deep in the mud and splattered, said to me, “I’ve been where you are. I know how to get out. Don’t let go!”

I held on with all my might. But, my fingers – slick with mud – slipped. I couldn’t hold on. I started sinking deeper.

Quick as a flash, the hand I had held clasped my wrist. Then, they pulled … and pulled me out! I was amazed! I was still in the mud. But I was standing, not sinking.

They kept pulling me. One step, then two, then … I heard a cry of distress behind me. I turned to find someone else stuck in the mud where I had been, sinking, neck deep, head down with an arm reaching out.

I turned back to my rescuers, wanting to ask them to help me help this other trapped person.

Only to find I was now holding the hand of the glowing person. He smiled and nodded, giving me permission to help the mudstuck one.

I turned and stepped deeper into the mud. I reached out – and felt my glowing rescuer’s hand reach through me and meld with my hand. Together, we took hold of the trapped person’s hand.

The hand jerked closed on our hand, the head lifting in shock.

I leaned forward and said, “I’ve been where you are. I know how to get out. Don’t let go!”

But the mud-slicked hand slid out of our’s. In a snap, we gripped the wrist with a hand, I now realized, was strangely cleaner than before.

And we, my rescuer and I, pulled the person from the mud.

— Life

I had a life … that was remarkably similar to a dream I once had. Along the way, I saw people in trouble, in situations I had been in – had lived through – and was overcoming with help from a Savior. So, I let my Savior reach through me, and we held out our hand. And I said, “I’ve been there. I’ve lived your pain. I know the way out of that mess. I know who can lead you to a home you never knew you had, a place of belonging. Take my hand. Come with me.”