The Father's Love International Ministries - Walking into a River of Gold, by Lance Sneath

Walking Into A River of Gold

By Lanch Sneath (As shared at Open Heaven June 2006)

I dreamed I was standing in a river that was flowing out of the opening of a cave at the base of a huge mountain. The river was knee-deep, and the sun shining on the water made it a quite comfortable temperature. I saw people I knew from many different churches scattered throughout the river, all doing the same thing: we were panning for gold.

Each person had a screen about 18 inches by 18 inches that we would put down into the water and stir up the surface of the bottom of the river, looking for gold. Every now and then, people would excitedly yell that they had found some, and people would run to see the little bit of glittering specks of gold in the screen. They would carefully gather the fine gold dust and put it in into small bags. The collective effort seemed to yield less than a teaspoon of gold dust, but people seemed quite content with what they were getting.

I became very discontented with the current progress of mining for gold, and realized that the really good gold had to be in the deeper parts of the river, up inside the mountain. I told people my idea and asked if any wanted to go with me. They looked at me as though I was really quite mad. Only one of my friends agreed to go with me.

I remember as we first started walking up into the cave that the river current got stronger, the water started getting deeper, and it was much cooler as we left the sunlight and headed into the mountain cave. I was somewhat afraid as the natural light from the sunshine was further behind us, and it grew darker. I experienced more fear as my flesh began to grow numb on my legs as I walked into the deeper water. My friend said to me as the water grew waist deep, "I have another idea that I think is easier and might work. I don't want to go any further, I can't feel my legs." I reluctantly turned around and went back down the river and exited the cave. We both warmed up a bit and enjoyed the sunshine.

I asked my friend what his idea was. He then got a smile on his face, and said, "We can tie two of these screens together, and then we can seine twice as much." I watched as he did this and tried it. Others around got very excited and soon people were doing twice as much of the panning for gold, but with very little noticeable results. I then said to the group, "What you are calling twice as much is really just more of the same. I'm going deeper into the river and up into the mountain. I want real gold nuggets. If anyone else wants to go with me, I'm leaving now."

I once again went into the deeper water and entered the mountain cave. No one followed me this time. They were busy "doing more of the same." I remember feeling more determined this time to go further up river and deeper this time. I was convinced there was real gold there. I passed the place where my friend and I had turned around, and had a sense of being drawn beyond that point. As I walked further into the river, I noticed that though my legs were numb, the walking was becoming easier. The river had two currents - one going down the river, and one returning deeper into the mountain that was along the sides of the channel and in the undertow of the deeper water. I found myself being pulled upstream into deeper water and into the mountain cave where there was no more natural sunlight. I suddenly started to see this amazing golden glow coming from out of the river, and from the ceiling of this cave. The deeper I got, the number my flesh became. As the water came up to my chest, I realized I had very little control - I was being pulled up into the river and mountain at a very rapid pace.

I rounded what appeared to be a bend in the river, and had one of the most incredible, awe-inspiring experiences I have ever had. I was in a deep pool in a large cavern in the deep parts of the mountain. The cave had so much gold in it, that there was a dancing glimmering light much like the aurora borealis, the Northern Lights. I found myself in an absolute state of euphoria as I experienced what I truly believed to have been one of God's treasure rooms. The dancing, glimmering light passed through me and I experienced a joy in my spirit beyond words. I immediately felt "plugged in" when the dancing golden light passed through me and I heard a singing deep down in my spirit. It seemed that the gold, the river, and the light were all singing in unison the phrase, "glory, glory, glory!" I was moved so deeply, words cannot describe the joy and peace I was feeling at that moment. I could no longer feel my flesh, but I no longer cared. I wanted to just stay there. The dream ended.

Interpretation: I asked the Lord the interpretation of the dream, and He said to me:

"When you seek me with a whole heart, you will surely find Me in all My glory. You must be willing to go deeper into My river and break from the traditions of men if you desire to enter the rich storehouses of heavenly treasure I have for you. Few are willing to leave the comfort of the shallow water and the natural sunshine that the flesh requires for its comfort. You must trust that what I have for you in the deep parts of My River inside My holy mountain are far superior to any treasure you shall find if you go with the multitudes who are happy to go through the motions of religion and do more of the same. You must also know that the natural light that leads the sons of the first Adam seems right and feels good, but in the end it is empty, and leads to second death. You must walk fully in the light that comes from Me and the River of My Spirit in order for you to find those great places where I dwell with the fullness of My glory.

You found a treasure room that existed in Eden that once revealed My glory to Adam and Eve. It has been preserved in Heavenly realms, kept for those true ones who follow in the way of the Second Adam. The joy and peace that comes from Me will bring life in ways far beyond anything in the flesh and the natural realm of your life. My dear one, It gave Me great joy to share one of My treasure rooms with you! I truly long for you to daily come back to share the many, many more treasures I have for you and all My people! Come back and bring more of our friends!"

Related Scriptures:

Genesis 2: 10-12

¹⁰A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. ¹¹The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. ¹²(The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx are also there.)

Psalm 46:4

⁴There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells.

Isaiah 2:2-3; 5

²In the last days the mountain of the Lord's temple will be established as chief among the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and all nations will stream to it. ³Many peoples will come and say, "Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths." The law will go out from Zion, the word of the Lord from Jerusalem... ⁵Come, O house of Jacob, let us walk in the light of the Lord.

Philippians 4:19

My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory, by Christ Jesus.

Psalm 36:6-9

⁶Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the great deep. O Lord, you preserve both man and beast. ⁷How priceless is your unfailing love! Both high and low among men find refuge in the shadow of your wings.

⁸They feast on the abundance of your house; you give them drink from your river of delights. ⁹For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light.

Revelation 21:23-24

²³The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. ²⁴The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it.

__________________
Praise Him Always!
Lance

Lance,

This is a great dream and I appreciate your taking the time to share it with us. I want to try to break this down as simply as possible to explain what I saw as I read this.but there was a lot to see! I am very stirred up and excited about how the Lord is revealing Himself.

I dreamed I was standing in a river that was flowing out of the opening of a cave at the base of a huge mountain. This mountain seemed very vivid to me and made me think of David as he hid himself from Saul in the caves (hidden in Christ). In reflection as to why this stood out to me in this way, I believe the Lord has revealed you have a heart like David. The river was knee-deep, and the sun shining on the water made it a quite comfortable temperature. The Lord is beckoning us to come out into the deep and get ready for a haul, but we tend to like it in the shallow warm water. I saw people I knew from many different churches scattered throughout the river, all doing the same thing: we were panning for gold.

This is funny to me because I often refer to studying Scripture as ?digging for gold'.

Each person had a screen about 18 inches by 18 inches that we would put down into the water and stir up the surface of the bottom of the river, looking for gold. Every now and then, people would excitedly yell that they had found some, and people would run to see the little bit of glittering specks of gold in the screen. They would carefully gather the fine gold dust and put it in into small bags. I realize that it has been stated in this thread that 18 is a number for judgment, but I don't think that is right - sorry. Honestly, I'm not trying to contend.

Here's how I draw that conclusion:

8 is the number* of ?super-abundant anointing' (to ?super-abound' to ?make fat' to ?cover in fat' ?one who bounds in strength'). The number 10 is the number of the ?perfection of Divine order'. Putting 8+10 together seems more likely to make 18 ?the perfection of Divine super-abundant anointing'. However, for your dream it seems that it was what the people believed as opposed to what was really true. The people believed they were making progress, but you recognized that it was actually yielding very little gold and refused to continue that course of action. (See John 15:8-17)

*Information gathered from Number in Scripture, by E.W. Bullinger. (He also states that 19 is the number of Divine judgment. Maybe that is what 18 was mistaken for.)

This is a weird tid-bit, Lance. Not sure why I did this, but I counted out the first 18 books in the Bible and landed on the book of Job. The next 18 landed on Zephaniah. You may find 1:18 interesting since it has a reference to gold. Maybe you can make more sense out of it, but I think the Lord is talking about the gold that people rely on and get by their own strength and effort - which is what you saw people doing in this dream. People are using their ?super-abundant anointing' to get divine gold, but are they relying on God to do it? If they aren't, they are working in vain. (Ps 127)

The collective effort seemed to yield less than a teaspoon of gold dust, but people seemed quite content with what they were getting. The people are being unproductive - does this sound like the church? Originating from CO, panning for gold never held any interest for me because they were always set up at the tourist traps. It may be fun, but if you were trying to make a living at it, you would quickly be very discouraged - and broke!

I became very discontented with the current progress of mining for gold, and realized that the really good gold had to be in the deeper parts of the river, up inside the mountain. Time to dig! I told people my idea and asked if any wanted to go with me. They looked at me as though I was really quite mad. Only one of my friends agreed to go with me. Many are called but few are chosen. That road is hard and narrow and steep and at times - treacherous.

I remember as we first started walking up into the cave that the river current got stronger, the water started getting deeper, and it was much cooler as we left the sunlight and headed into the mountain cave. When we start going deeper with God we have to leave the familiar comforts. I was somewhat afraid as the natural light from the sunshine was further behind us, and it grew darker. This really seems to reflect the desert walk we all must take. It is a spiritual darkness where we have to walk by faith and not by sight. I experienced more fear as my flesh began to grow numb on my legs as I walked into the deeper water. This is where the flesh life dies and the spiritual life begins. We have to press forward through the pain and heartache of picking up our cross and following Jesus. My friend said to me as the water grew waist deep, "I have another idea that I think is easier and might work. I don't want to go any further, I can't feel my legs." I reluctantly turned around and went back down the river and exited the cave. We both warmed up a bit and enjoyed the sunshine. My guess is that the Lord has revealed when this actually happened to you in your life. You had left the pack, but then even your friend was reluctant to go THAT deep. Reluctantly you followed him out of the cave (the secret place) - most likely because the flesh was screaming for you to stop! That old enemy of ours always seeks its way. (Romans 7) So often we listen to those around us more than the Spirit Who beckons us deeper in Christ! This is a battle we all have to win over and over again!!!

Forgive me all, but I have to take the ax to this sacred cow. What came to mind as I read this is the constant prayer being chanted for double blessings. This dream is revealing of the fruitlessness of this kind of prayer if the Lord is not behind it. (Is it our wishful thinking as opposed to His righteous judgment?) There are times when God gives a double blessing, but let us ask the hard questions. Have we really gone through what Job went through??? Have we followed Elijah as Elisha did to the very end? Just wondering? I do realize that if a thief is caught, he is to repay 2 fold. But we also need to look at if we have been robbed or if we are reaping what we have sewn. This requires discernment on the part of the reader. I mean no condemnation as there is none in Christ. Others around got very excited and soon people were doing twice as much of the panning for gold, but with very little noticeable results. This reminds me of 2 Tim 3: 7 Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. I then said to the group, "What you are calling twice as much is really just more of the same. I'm going deeper into the river and up into the mountain. I want real gold nuggets. If anyone else wants to go with me, I'm leaving now." This is something I really appreciate about you, Lance. It is your ability to see the truth and then lead others to walk in it with you. I know it must be heart-breaking for you when you have had to leave so many behind! Be encouraged though, this honors the Lord - that though all may forsake you - you still go after Him!

I once again went into the deeper water and entered the mountain cave. No one followed me this time. They were busy "doing more of the same." Sounds like church. I have found myself having to choose if I want to leave the presence of God to go to church. It can be hard when you know you are to minister! It is easy when you don't. J I remember feeling more determined this time to go further up river and deeper this time. I was convinced there was real gold there. I passed the place where my friend and I had turned around, and had a sense of being drawn beyond that point. As I walked further into the river, I noticed that though my legs were numb, the walking was becoming easier. This seems very opposite to reality - which of course tells us you have entered the kingdom of God. The river had two currents - one going down the river, and one returning deeper into the mountain that was along the sides of the channel and in the undertow of the deeper water. THIS IS WHERE YOU HAVE ENTERED THE CIRCULATORY SYSTEM OF THE LORD! I am not an anatomy buff, but I will tell you I saw a heart beating pulling you towards it just as clear as watching something on TV! I had to surf the web trying to figure out exactly what I saw! How amazing is our God! I found myself being pulled upstream into deeper water and into the mountain cave where there was no more natural sunlight. I suddenly started to see this amazing golden glow coming from out of the river, and from the ceiling of this cave. The deeper I got, the number my flesh became. As the water came up to my chest, I realized I had very little control - I was being pulled up into the river and mountain at a very rapid pace. YOU WERE LIKE BLOOD FLOWING INTO THE HEART TO BE RECHARGED WITH NUTRIENTS AND OXYGEN!

(Any medical personnel out there that would care to clarify this process?)

I rounded what appeared to be a bend in the river, and had one of the most incredible, awe-inspiring experiences I have ever had. I was in a deep pool in a large cavern in the deep parts of the mountain. THE HEART OF GOD - THAT IS WHERE THE GOLD IS AT! The cave had so much gold in it, that there was a dancing glimmering light much like the aurora borealis, the Northern Lights. Let there be LIGHT! I found myself in an absolute state of euphoria as I experienced what I truly believed to have been one of God's treasure rooms. The dancing, glimmering light passed through me and I experienced a joy in my spirit beyond words. You were in the heart of God, Lance - this is so awesome! You are in the deep chamber of His love - His heart chamber! See Songs 3:1-5 as this whole journey seems to be seen in this passage. 4:16 seems appropriate too as the Lord would have you partake in His splendor.) I immediately felt "plugged in" when the dancing golden light passed through me and I heard a singing deep down in my spirit. It seemed that the gold, the river, and the light were all singing in unison the phrase, "glory, glory, glory!" I was moved so deeply, words cannot describe the joy and peace I was feeling at that moment. I could no longer feel my flesh, but I no longer cared. I wanted to just stay there. The dream ended.

I can hear a concert of halleluiahs! What a wonderful vision of the night!

Isaiah 2:2

In the last days the mountain of the Lord's temple will be established as chief among the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and all nations will stream to it.

Praising Him with you,

Judy

__________________
Because of the blood of Christ we are fellow-citizens of God's household - being carefully joined to become a holy temple to the Lord. It is in this dwelling where God lives by His Spirit.

Judy,

Wow - thanks for seeking the heart of the Lord in this -truly! The idea of being pulled into the chambers of the heart of the Lord is most incredible. It is the kind of profound and mysterious idea, that I just don't know what to say, other than, "halellujah". I think in the Kingdom/spiritual sense, which is more real than the physical/flesh realm, I was indeed within His heart. I felt totally alive and surrounded by the love of God while there. I stand in awe of Him.

I will just add another comment about the numerology for 18. The 18 x 18 could be taken as multiples of six, the number of man. If the two 18s are added, you have six sixes - man to his fullest capacity. Or you could have 666 x 666. In that sense, it describes man multiplying his efforts - to his limits, and then still having little of significance to show for his efforts. In either case, this is certainly in the context of what the dream is showing - the futility of man's bext vs the fullness of God's best.

__________________
Praise Him Always!

Lance