(089) Common Mistakes in Dream Interpretation – Tony Cooke

Hearing God in a dream can be a life-changing experience, but it can also be a confusing one! Dreams speak a symbolic and sometimes confusing language and the process of interpretation is not well understood, making it subject to mistakes and abuse. It’s no wonder the claim to hearing God in a dream is often met with skepticism, disinterest and even mockery.

Dream interpretation is more art than science, so it isn’t always straightforward or formulaic, but there are some principles we can learn that will help us hear God more clearly in this creative and powerful way.

In this episode of the show, I talk with British dreams expert Tony Cooke about the common mistakes people make when learning to hear God in dreams. We unpack the dynamics of the God-dream experience so that you can confidently discern God’s voice as we sleep. You’ll discover:

• A little of Tony’s back story and how he became interested in dream interpretation when prophetic experiences broke out in his church.
• Mistake 1: misunderstanding the symbolism of people in our dreams.

One of the biggest mistakes people make is when they see a related person in their dream and they assume the dream is about that person.

• Mistake 2: over-reliance on dream dictionaries. A dream dictionary is helpful in teaching us about symbolism, but has limited use, because symbols must be understood in the context of the dreamer’s life.
• Mistake 3: fixating on individual symbols while not considering the bigger picture.
• Mistake 4: dream interpreters who lapse into prophecy and thereby add to the message of the dream.
• Mistake 5: the inability to discern between soul and spirit in a dream.
• A reminder that making mistakes is part of the learning process! Given our propensity for error, humility in dream interpretation is crucial. We also need to receive training and be willing to reflect on our experiences in community.

The biggest mistake of all is not getting trained properly. Humility says, “I need to know how to do this properly or I can do damage.”

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About Tony Cooke

Tony is the founder of The Dream Academy (www.thedreamacademy.online), an online training and support site for biblical dream interpreters. He and his wife Dwee planted pastored the Cheltenham Vineyard Church in 2009 and later continued to teach and train in many countries including The Netherlands, Canada, Switzerland, India, South Africa, USA, Spain and Ireland. Tony is also on the Leadership Board of Patria Ministries International, a global family of businesses, churches, ministries and itinerant ministers which provides a highly interdependent personal environment where leaders can build relationships and be strengthened and equipped for greater Kingdom influence. Tony and his wife Dwee have two grown up children and live on the south coast of England.