When a Dream Brought Complete Freedom
I wanted to thank everyone for joining me on this journey of freedom, healing and truth.
What began for me as a stubborn rash under my armpits in 2021 slowly revealed itself as God’s gentle (and sometimes insistent) way of speaking to my deeper wounds. When he told me it would be a process I didn’t imagine it would lead to all of this. The pain I had buried from church hurt, the anger I thought I had dealt with, the fear of vulnerability equated to weakness and the lies I believe about forgiveness and my audience all rose to the surface in my skin.
Through the flare ups in 2024 and 2025, the kitchen floor moment,, the vision of Jesus stepping in, the confirming dream, and the honest conversation with my family, God patiently and lovingly unravels what I could not undo myself. Each part of the series showed a new layer: the promise I made to live with an open. journal, the resilience I discovered, the difference of forgiveness as a weapon vs a gift, and the truth I don’t hate my audience–I love people.
And now, my story has a beautiful ending.
Early Sunday morning I had a dream. This time it included women that I had known and respected from my past church. They were specific people who, even today, would turn away and not speak to me if they saw me out. In the dream, I was dressed in an outfit similar to what I wore from my last award ceremony. As I walked through a mall, I saw them seated at a table. There were four seats and three were filled with these women.
One of them spoke to me as they were making lists and she asked me if I was ready for what was coming. I said yes and took a seat. I looked at all of them and expressed my surprise that they were talking to me, since they have refused to do so in the past and have never asked for forgiveness for everything that happened. This is when one by one they each asked my forgiveness.
I told them this was a good start, but they might also want to ask my family, friends and their own children for forgiveness. After that, I said I needed to go and meet my friend for a movie. They were a few other details, but this was the most important part of the dream. When I woke up, I knew deep in my spirit: It Was Finished.
Later, when I told my family about the dream, there were some tears. My heart is still saddened at the fact they have chosen to cut off relationship with me. On this side of heaven, there may not be restored relationship, but I know that on the other side we will see each other again, and things will be different.
For the next three days, I watched as my rash went from red to pink to barely noticeable. What had felt finished in the dream now became visible in the natural. The healing has led me fully into the “wide open spaces” the Lord has been inviting me into throughout this journey. He didn’t just want me to write about freedom–He wanted me to know it at a deep level. It was an important process of untying knots and healing wounds in my soul that God wanted completed.
He desired for me to walk in freedom: room to breathe deeply; room to love without the shadow of past hurt; and room to write, speak, and serve from a place of wholeness instead of defense.
The body of Christ is really so much bigger than four walls, and my audience is anyone with ears to hear. I now approach life and ministry with open hands and heart, no longer guarded by old pain. But oh so much wiser. I saw the wisdom in a part of the dream, and I know God wanted us walking forward into the future with this wisdom to guide us.
If you have been walking through your own hidden hurt: whether it shows up in your body, emotions, relationships, or faith–I want you to hear this: God sees every layer and is willing to walk this out with you. He is not in a hurry, but he will be very thorough. He knows exactly how to reach you, and he is fully able to bring complete healing in his perfect way and timing.
Sometimes that comes through a long process. Sometimes it comes in a moment. Either way, he is always faithful to finish what he started.
If this series has encouraged you, I’d love to hear from you. Share your own story of God’s healing: big or small n the comments, or you can message me through my contact page. If you are still in the middle of your layers, please know you are not alone and you are more resilient than you realize.
The rash had its purpose. Now it is quiet and calm, and my wide open spaces are here.
Let’s all live freely and boldly in the spacious place God has prepared for us.
Much Grace,
Darlene
