Does God Speak to You in Dreams? (A School Mass on The Solemnity of St. Joseph)

See some of you smiling already.

You know what's coming, right?

Okay.

Good morning.

So today we celebrate the solemnity of who?

Saint Joseph.

And I mentioned at the beginning of the Mass I want to focus on one aspect of his life, Saint Joseph, the who, the dreamer.

Saint Joseph the Dreamer.

You know, today we heard in the gospel how the angel spoke to Joseph in a dream.

I have a question for you.

How many people here has God ever spoken to you in a dream?

How many people here would you say God has ever spoken to you in a dream before?

Okay.

Few hands.

Alright.

Okay, I'm gonna ask for you to do something a little braver.

Sometimes we have good dreams, sometimes bad dreams, sometimes we have nightmares.

Sometimes God speaks to us in dreams.

Who in here would feel comfortable sharing with us maybe a dream that God has shared with you?

Yeah, a dream that where God has spoken to you.

Okay, you want to share a dream God's given to you?

What's that dream?

A vocation where I'm gonna be when I grow up.

Whoa, God gave you a dream for your vocation.

Vocation that's a pretty big word.

Vocation.

My job is gonna be a pediatrician.

Oh, okay.

Good.

I thought they were clapping because you were gonna say you're gonna be a nun or something.

Like a share if God ever spoke to you in a dream like Joseph, and if you could share what what that was.

What was your dream?

To be a nun.

To be a nun! Oh, wow, interesting.

Okay, can we help Pastor?

Okay.

Right here.

What was God's dream for you?

Something that I need to do for my parents.

Something you need to do for your parents.

Something nice that I need to do for my parents.

Okay, you want to share what that is?

Uh I need to help them with chores.

Okay.

God told you that you need to help your parents with chores.

Okay.

Could you help pass down the mic, please?

He says he loves me.

Oh, God says he loves you in a dream.

Okay, couple here.

That Jesus was alive.

Jesus alive.

Wonderful.

Beautiful.

Let's go a couple more.

To say Hail Mary.

Okay, last one.

You forgot.

Okay, that's okay.

I forget my dreams too sometimes.

To remember my pendants?

To remember your penance?

Like for confession?

Oh, what was your penance?

To say one hail Mary.

Okay, good.

To say one hail Mary.

Thank you.

Alright.

So God has spoken to you through these dreams, right?

And we shared how God spoke to Joseph in these dreams.

How many people here know how many dreams does the Bible say that Joseph had?

Or how at least how many dreams that the Bible shares that Saint Joseph has?

How many people know?

Let's see who knows.

How many dreams does the Bible say or the stories that the Bible shares that Saint Joseph had?

Okay.

I'm gonna go back here and I'm gonna come this side.

How many dreams?

Three.

Three close.

You're close.

Hey, can you help pass down the mic?

Five.

Uh go down.

Eleven.

So you got three, it's pretty close.

Five, you're very you're so close.

You're so close.

You have three, five, what how many dreams?

Two.

Two.

You guys are just you're right around it.

You're so close.

You're you're getting there.

You're getting there.

Okay.

Four?

Okay, four.

All right, you have four dreams.

Four dreams of Saint Joseph.

Yeah.

Well, we heard the first one today, right?

So the angel says to Joseph to take someone into his home.

Who did the angel say to for Joseph to take into his home?

Who was that?

Who was it?

Mary.

That's right, Mary's wife into his home.

The second dream was when uh God said to Joseph to flee to Egypt to escape somebody.

To escape a ruler.

Who knows the name of that ruler?

This is the second dream that Saint Joseph had to escape somebody.

Who was that somebody?

King Herod.

That's right, King Herod.

And then the third dream was when the angel said, Joseph, come back to Israel because something happened.

Something had come back, come back now.

Because you escaped Herod.

Now come back because something happened.

What happened?

Because the angel asked him to come back.

I'm gonna go around this way, okay?

What happened in the third dream?

Okay?

Because he died down.

He died down, yes.

Okay, so Herod, he he passed away.

And then the last dream that the angel uh shared with Joseph is okay, he's going back to Israel.

He's like, make a detour.

Make a detour and go to the city of to the town of what town?

What town?

Bethlehem.

Close.

You're I you're technically right.

But the but what are the scripture?

Nineveh?

Nineveh close close.

It does start with an N too.

Okay.

Alright, what is it?

Can you pass the mic?

Um, Jerusalem.

Okay, Jerusalem starts with a J.

I mean, that's good.

All right, what do you think?

Ireland.

Ireland, okay.

Patrick's two days ago, right?

That was two days ago.

So go back to where?

Egypt.

Egypt, okay.

N is the place.

That's good.

All right.

All right.

I know I tr you guys can get this.

I know you can.

I trust you.

Jerusalem.

You got we got Jerusalem already.

Okay.

Starts with an N.

Um I forgot.

Okay.

Who who knows the place?

It starts with an N.

Nazareth.

Nazareth.

Okay, Nazareth.

You know, Nazareth, Ireland, that's pretty close, right?

I mean.

Okay, so four dreams.

Four dreams that that that Joseph had.

Now, here's another question for you.

Alright, this is a trivia question, okay?

So we have four dreams of Saint Joseph.

How many images of Saint Joseph do you see in our church?

Now, now don't count, don't count the screens, okay?

Don't count the screens, but if you just look at the the structure of our church, how many pictures, images, maybe a statue?

Well, actually, let's let's let's not do statues.

Let's just do images of Joseph that you see in our church.

Okay, you look think look carefully, look carefully, see carefully.

All right, excluding excluding the screens.

How many do you see in our church?

Okay.

Two.

Two?

Close.

Okay, what do you think?

Three.

Close.

Four?

Four, okay.

I'm gonna show you, all right?

I'm gonna show you.

Okay.

Four images.

If you look back, you see the main one, right?

Right there in the center, that's one.

Then to the left, you have the carpenter, that's two.

And then if you look right, he's what?

He's praying.

That's three.

So there's three stained glass windows of Saint Joseph.

Where's the fourth?

Where is it?

Behind me?

Oh, on my shirt.

That's true.

Let's can let's not count this one though, okay?

Let's this, yeah, but that's good.

Where up there?

That's right.

Up here is another image of Joseph and the birth of Jesus.

So four stained glass images of Saint Joseph.

But, okay, so four images and how many dreams?

Four dreams.

Four images, four dreams.

But we also have a statue, don't we?

We also have a statue of Saint Joseph.

You guys know where the statue is?

Can you point to where the statue is?

Oh, yeah, that's true.

There's a little statue you guys brought up today.

But like the main one, like the one who's that's always here.

Can you point to where the statue of Saint Joseph is?

Which direction?

I see everybody pointing in different directions.

The main one.

Main statue of Saint Joseph.

Back there, right?

Back in the corner over there.

So if you ever get there, it is.

That's on shown on the screen there.

Statue of Saint Joseph.

Statue of Saint Joseph.

I want to show you something too.

I know this homie is a little bit longer because it's uh our big solemnity, and so I hope you bear with me.

I have a statue of Saint Joseph.

You want to see it?

No, he didn't die.

No, this is not him.

No.

This is Saint Joseph sleeping.

It is Saint Joseph the dreamer.

Now, um uh I have this in my office where I work.

And anytime I have like a hard decision to to make, I ask Saint Joseph to sleep on it.

I I I I ask him to pray on it.

I put it under him.

Mrs.

Hawley knows what I'm talking about.

Because I have my right, Mrs.

Hawley?

I I have my leadership meeting every week, and Ms.

Hawley's part of my leadership team.

And so uh whenever I have a hard decision to make, it's like I don't know what to do about this.

Okay, St.

Joseph, sleep on it.

All right, pray on it.

And I ask him to to dream like he dreamed in the gospel and to reveal to us what's what's the decision that that you want, right?

This is what I do, right?

Yeah, Mrs.

Hawley says yes.

And Deacon Nick is part of my leadership team too.

He's over there, he knows this statue.

And so does Claudia, our director of evangelization.

They're part of my leadership team.

Hard decision, ask Saint Joseph to sleep on it.

Okay.

Is there something that you would like Saint Joseph to sleep on?

To dream on?

To help you pray for?

Then we're gonna we'll conclude our homily with this, okay?

Can you share with us some things you want Saint Joseph to pray with and for you for?

What would you like to ask Saint Joseph to pray for you?

And we'll conclude our homily with this, as you share with us, okay?

What would you like him to sleep on, to dream on, to pray for?

Family.

For your family?

Okay, what else would you like him to pray for, to sleep on?

Loving.

Loving, okay.

Alright?

Grades.

Grades?

Are you not doing good on grades?

No comment.

Okay.

What would you like St.

Joseph pray for or sleep on?

Grades.

Grades too?

Okay.

What else?

Somebody who hasn't gone yet, who hasn't raised their hand yet.

Oh.

Friends?

Friends?

To spend more time with my mom?

Oh, spend more time with your mom?

Beds.

Beds?

Do you have an uncomfortable bed or something?

Oh, okay.

Alright.

What do you want?

My little brother.

Your little brother.

Okay.

My new pillow sheet.

Your new pillow sheet.

Pillow sheets?

Okay.

That's an interesting thing to pray on.

The community.

The community.

Beautiful.

Okay.

Last couple ones.

School.

School.

Right.

My grades.

Your grades?

That's three people with grades.

Alright.

Test.

Test.

The maker of heaven and earth.

The maker of heaven and earth.

Okay.

So, whatever your prayer intentions, we're going to ask Saint Joseph to pray on them, okay?

So when I say Saint Joseph, we're going to respond, pray for us.

And we're going to ask for his prayers, okay?

And together, Saint Joseph, pray for us.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Amen.