Saturday of the Fifth Week of Easter April 30, 2005 Scripture: Act 16: 1-10; John 15: 18-21 Reflection: “During the night Paul had a dream…concluding that God had called (him) to proclaim the good news….” Does God speak to you or plant seeds in your life through dreams? Very often dreams stimulate and energize us to action. Sometimes through an individual’s dream or community’s dream efforts have been made to open our minds to new ventures in spreading and sharing God’s word. A dream can be a vehicle to encourage us to embrace new challenges for planting seeds of growth. Have your dreams led to such efforts? It seems that Paul was attentive to a dream he experienced which played a role in his missionary zeal. Through his dream and the guidance of the Holy Spirit, he was encouraged to travel with Timothy to Macedonia to plant seeds of faith and hope in order to bring about the growth of the Christian community in new territory. Clearly in the gospel, Jesus tells us that if the worldly authorities of his time rejected him, then we should not expect anything different. God “chose us out of the world” to be disciples; to plant seeds of faith and hope even in the midst of the bleak realities of our time and culture. Suggested Action: Give attention to a recent dream. Or pay attention to a dream the next time you have one. Is God speaking to you in a way that he spoke to Paul or other dreamers in the scripture? Record your dream and reflect upon its meaning in your life. Sr. Suzanne Delaney, IHM Columbia, Maryland