Chip Gaines appeared to me in a dream, and it probably means something very significant. Or not.

I had a dream last night that I was sitting across from Chip Gaines of HGTV's Fixer Upper, at a table in a very busy place that I can not identify. Chip reached over, and took my hands in his, only his hands were a woman's hands, delicate and soft, and he was wearing a ruby ring set in gold, which I remember thinking was sort of strange. I can not remember what we were talking about, but I do remember he was very much in love with me, and so pulling my hands away from his, I redirected his attention to his beautiful wife, Joanna, who I had pulled up on my phone in a video of her sliding out of the back of a mini van in a pale pink bikini. Only it was not Joanna. It was Katherine Wolfe, from the blog and book, Hope Heals. And can I just say, that at the time of my dream, even moments after waking, this all felt like significant and beautiful foreshadowing of something amazing to come, and yet, now, as I write it out, I am discovering that it was actually incredibly ridiculous and probably not going to ever really happen. Probably.

And then there is Joseph. (Mt 1:18-24)

Joseph had nothing to go by, other than a dream;

A dream where the angel of the Lord appears, and assures him to "do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home".

An angel that assures him, "For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her."

His heart, torn, his future plans, erased, and yet, he listened to the angel, he believed in the dream.

Dare I say, my dream about Chip is almost easier to believe?

While putting dishes into the dishwasher in a way that I know my husband will rearrange later, we shared our thoughts on Joseph. My husband shared with me that he has been praying a novena to Joseph. I shared with my husband my intense dream about Chip Gaines. You can really get a clear picture of how we are on the same spiritual level here, can't you?

"Nick", I said, as I put a bowl into the top rack, "Joseph does not get enough credit. First, he finds out that the woman he is betrothed to is pregnant. Then, he has a dream that tells him, "Bring that woman home". And not only does he bring her into his home, and not only is his wife pregnant with a child that is not his, BUT...dear Joseph gets the added bonus of the oh, and by the way, you can't be intimate with your wife....EVER." I turned to Nick and asked, "What man today would ever go for THAT deal?" And without hesitation, Nick replied, "Must have been one heck of a dream!!!!"

And it must have been.

And it must of been one heck of a faith, too.

So my dream...what did mean? After all...Joseph was a carpenter, and well...Chip sure is handy in the workshop, as well. I will bet he could make an awesome manger out of shiplap! What could God be trying to tell me?

I don't think my dream about Chip meant anything at all, other than the fact that Nick and I shared a bottle of wine and watched Fixer Upper before falling asleep. Maybe God is telling me to not drink so much and to pray before bed, rather than watch TV. But Joseph's dream means everything; His call to be holy, to walk in obedient faith, to quietly stand by the young woman who was carrying the Son of God within her womb. Joseph and Mary are the perfect example of trust, the perfect example of holiness, the perfect example of marriage. Talk about a power couple.

Joseph, foster father of Jesus, please pray for us. By the power of God, please give us the strength to walk the path of inconvenience and discomfort; to say "thy will be done"and to trust in your plan for each of us. No matter how crazy your plan appears.