We all sleep. We all dream. But few of us embrace the opportunity for a closeness to God that these hours of our lives offer.
“We are created to need one-third of our lives to be in sleep, in the unconscious… Dreams have their place and purpose,” says Laura Huff Hileman, spiritual director, author, and founder of Fire by Night Dreamwork.
“[Dreamwork] isn’t something you learn, it’s built in,” she points out. “You don’t have to add anything, all you have to do is fall asleep and let go, and it happens. Maybe you remember, maybe you don’t. But every single night, on an average of five times per night, you are dipping into REM sleep, and you have a dream. And what’s going on in those dreams?”
Huff Hileman has been inspired by her study of dreams in Scripture and from Carl Jung’s teachings. She observes, “What dreams are trying to get us to do all along is to experience wholeness… They’re doing their job whether we remember them or not. They’re working for us. People say ‘sleep on it’ for a reason.”
Dreams are a connection point with God
“In Ephesians 3, Paul talks about length, depth, breadth, and height,” Huff Hileman shares. “That’s what we are talking about. That is what dreams are doing. They are helping us experience aspects of ourselves that we need to become aware of and understand and integrate into our lives.
“Dreams are coming from a sacred source that I believe is the inner Christ, the indwelling Spirit of God. God rises up through dreams. It’s a picture language where the dreams are the permeable spot between us and our Creator.”
As we see with dreamers in Scripture, this practice is ancient, even if it is new to our modern faith journey. It takes a lot of discernment. Bringing dreamwork alongside a practice that is familiar, like contemplative prayer, can help.
But more than understanding dreams, the work is about relationship. Huff Hileman says, “This is that longing for God met by the longing from God. Dreams are how that gets pictured as we turn into the person God dreams us to be.”
Huff Hileman refers to dreamwork as “The way of wisdom.” She offers, “It is participating in this relationship with more depth and awe. God gets unshackled from our projections and we start encountering something more genuine. Some really practical steps of self-development come through dreams.”
Follow a dreamwork guide during Advent
“The Christian year starts here with these dreams in the book of Matthew, like God’s big dream,” says Laura Huff Hileman.
By the Light of Dreams: Advent Practices for Listening to God in the Night is a daily Advent companion that explores how dreams and visions – both our own and those in Scripture – show us God’s transformative presence in our lives and help us trust the inherent, unbreakable bond between ourselves and the divine.
Through activities, Godly play, an open mind, and a commitment to the process, readers can begin their own dreamwork. The devotionals include teaching, a reflection, examples of contemporary dreams and dreams from Scripture, and a “Wonder, Practice, Pray” activity.
The devotional is published by Upper Room Books, a ministry of The UMC’s Discipleship Ministries.
Leader resources
The book includes a small group leader guide as well as other supportive resources. Huff Hileman invites leaders to email her with questions or interest in meeting with others who are guiding a group through the study during Advent
In-person study in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee
Beginning on the first night of Advent, November 29, 2026, Huff Hileman will begin a four-week, in-person study of the book. Learn more.
Guided toward growth
“In one month, you will not become an expert dreamworker, but you are going to wake up to something,” encourages Huff Hileman. Her book, By the Light of Dreams: Advent Practices for Listening to God in the Night, was crafted to be a primer for dreamwork, perfect for those who are new to the practice.
“Over time, you feel amazingly known, loved, challenged, and changed, and there’s a guidance that comes through dreams. It might not be instant, but you’ll find yourself attuned to various perspectives,” she says.
Huff Hileman mentions the example of seeing a snake in a dream. After doing dreamwork, rather than being fearful, you might find yourself wondering about the snake’s perspective. She explains, “Everything in the dream is a part of the dreamer. That snake part of me burrows underground, sheds its skin, changes and grows, and gets rid of what it doesn’t need. What about me needs to shed and change and grow?
“It’s always changing and challenging, it’s pushing our edges, which is why we forget so many dreams – we don’t want to change. But the dreams are urging us to grow.”
Take time to notice
“It’s like manna every morning,” says Huff Hileman. “You practice not waking up so fast and you give yourself the time to notice your dream, without language. Take note of pictures and feelings and try to remember what took place before your awareness kicked in.
“Then try to remember the entire dream again before you write down a few words or draw a picture in a notebook. You can come up with a system to keep track, maybe with a title and a date and notes about what is going on in your life.
“Ask yourself, ‘What are my connections to that dream and how does it apply in my waking hours? Why this dream now?’ And you start to feel your way into whatever is moving. You begin to pay attention.”
Sometimes we dream something and then encounter a similar situation in our lives. Huff Hileman observes, “It’s God’s time. It’s like the eternal present. We’ve been given a chance to practice dealing with a difficulty or an emotion. My unconscious was aware this was inevitable and I am better resourced to meet it. We’re learning practical things for being alive together on the planet.”
The work doesn’t have to be solitary
When people explore their dreams together, they often benefit from fresh perspectives in a prayerful context. They might also realize that the dreams shared offer something meaningful to everyone.
“We’re hearing each other in a spirit of trust and unity. We grow community, creativity, and courage,” shares Huff Hileman. “You can get really brave and do things when the dream – God – is saying, ‘I’m already here, I’ve got you. You can do this.’”
Laura Buchanan works for UMC.org at United Methodist Communications. Contact her by email.
This story was published on November 9, 2026.
