One of the more intriguing moments in the crucifixion of Christ was the dream that Pontius Pilate’s wife¹ received about Jesus. It was so troubling, that she sent a message to her husband warning him to have nothing to do with this case:

 And while he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent him a message, saying, “See that you have nothing to do with that righteous Man; for last night I suffered greatly in a dream because of Him.” (Matthew 27:19 NASV)

Though this dream didn’t change Pilate’s decision, it shows that the Holy Spirit uses dreams to communicate truth to those who are not believers.

Over the past several years, stories have emerged of how the Holy Spirit is using dreams and visions to draw Muslims to Christ.

Recently CBN reported on how dreams are contributing to a spiritual revolution among the Uyghur living in Kazakhstan.

The country is located in Central Asia, and borders China on its Eastern border. It has a population of 21 million and about 70% are Muslim.

The Uyghur are found in the southeast corner of the country bordering China. Many are involved in the traditional practice of herding sheep and cattle.

The Uyghurs are spread across countries through out Central Asia, including China, Tibet, and Turkey, where they often face persecution from the larger ruling populations. This is especially true for those living in China.

Most Uyghurs hold to an Islamic tradition that goes back about 1,000 years.

In Kazakhstan, Uyghurs number about 300,000 and recently there is evidence that the Holy Spirit is moving on this group. This has resulted in a few hundred making a commitment to Christ.

Dreams are playing in role in these conversions as seen in CBN’s interview with Gulnisa.

She was a Muslim, who faithfully read her Koran and prayed.

But she had been suffering from severe pain for about five years. It was so bad at times, it prevented her from leaving her home.

“I went to mullahs or those that use tarot cards but couldn’t find any help,” she explained.

But then one night God spoke to her in a dream.

“Jesus himself came to me in a dream,” Gulnisa told CBN. “I had something like a ball and white cord in my hand, and it was unraveling, and the road was white, and Jesus said it’s ours. He smiled at me.”

At first she wasn’t completely sure who this person was. This resulted in her doing an internet search, where she found images of Christ who was “like the man in my dream who was dressed in white and bright light was emanating from Him”.

This resulted in her becoming Christian and she now attends a small house church in the village.

It often takes these type of supernatural encounters for a person to leave Islam. This is because such decisions often results in a person being cut off from their family.

These types of conversions are a fulfilment of Joel’s prophecy on how the Holy Spirit would be poured out on all flesh in the end times. This includes Jews and Gentile, Christian and nonChristian alike. This outpouring will result in people (believers and nonbelievers) receiving dreams and visions (Joel 2:28-31).

1. Though Pilate’s wife is unnamed, tradition states that her name was Procula and that she became a Christian as a result of the dream. The earliest reference to her conversion is found in the writings of Origen, a prolific Christian scholar and writer who lived between 185 ad and 235 ad. Though none of this can be substantiated, she was declared a saint by the Eastern Orthodox Church. ↩︎