A Name Revealed in the Midst of Fear

A few weeks before the night I was awakened at 2:00 a.m. and shown that I had “chaos” in my mind (the account of which you can find here), there was another night that made an incredible impact on me.

As mentioned in that story, at my age waking up at 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning had become a regular occurrence, usually attributed to too much caffeine during the day or lingering hot flashes. Many of these nights had stacked together, and I had begun to accept these mid-slumber wake-ups as my “normal.”

On those nights, my mind would immediately flood with thoughts:

• Oh no, I forgot to do this today…
• I should tell so-and-so about that thing…
• Why didn’t I think to try ___?
• What does this person think of me after I said that?
• If I don’t fix this right away, there’s going to be a consequence I won’t like…

These thoughts would often loop relentlessly, stirring adrenaline and keeping me awake for two, sometimes three hours before my body finally collapsed into exhaustion. I would sleep for an hour or so before it was time to get up for the day.

Living on three to five hours of sleep became routine. I managed my workload in a constant state of fatigue, drained, and ineffective.

It all started so innocently. So subtly. Over time, the shift was gradual enough to be nearly imperceptible. Night by night, the intensity of the thought patterns increased.

And then this happened.

One night in mid-October 2025, I awoke at 2:00 a.m. in the middle of a full-blown panic attack. What unfolded from there was nothing short of marvelous.

From my journal entry dated October 25:

Tony and I were both awakened at 2:00 a.m., though neither of us knew the other had been awake until we spoke the next day.

During the night, it turned out we were both overtaken by intense anxiety that robbed us of sleep and filled our minds with irrational, fearful thoughts. Our hearts raced. Adrenaline surged. Calm and security were stolen, even though nothing threatening was actually happening in our lives at that moment.

It was complete, irrational fear.

After several hours of prayer, battling restlessness, and working to calm our racing thoughts, sleep finally came. And when it did, I entered a vivid dream.

I walked into a room that felt like a small-town pub. It was dimly lit, with people scattered around tables, absorbed in their own conversations.

As I crossed the threshold, I sensed a small but noisy group of short individuals celebrating to my left. They were tucked into the shadows, but their voices carried clearly. They sounded jubilant, as if they couldn’t believe they had gotten away with something. It felt like triumph.

They shouted things like:

“We did it!” “We killed it!” “We destroyed it!” “We conquered Alona Peace!”

One face stepped forward from the shadows. Their eyes studied mine as they smiled broadly and said, “We killed Alona Peace.”

In the dream, I repeated the phrase “Alona Peace” over and over in my mind, determined to remember it when I woke up so I could look it up.

Tony’s alarm went off. He got up for work. I got up for the day.

Later, I searched to see whether “Alona Peace” had any meaning at all. What I found stopped me in my tracks.

Alona is a Hebrew feminine noun meaning oak tree.

I had recently been praying Isaiah 61:3, asking God—tentatively—whether I might one day be worthy of being called an Oak of Righteousness , a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendor.

Google also translated Alona as:

• a feminine name meaning oak tree , symbolizing strength and resilience (Hebrew)
• bright, shining light (Slavic roots)
• precious or offering (Hawaiian)
• noble (German)
• ,little rock (Breton)

What an astonishing thing—to be named an oak tree. To be associated with a bright, shining light (my connection to Isaiah 60:1). To be described as precious, noble, and strong.

And the enemy knows me as such.

The enemy celebrated stealing my peace for a short while.

But I celebrate a God who loves me, who answers prayer, and who speaks truth—even to the other side—about who I am.

Hallelujah. Jesus reigns.

He speaks, and it is love.

What this taught me

• God speaks in ways that lead to peace, not fear.
• Our identity in Christ is often revealed in unexpected moments.
• God is deeply attentive to the cares of our hearts. I had wondered in prayer whether I could truly be counted as an oak of righteousness. I struggled to receive that identity, feeling undeserving despite years of trying to follow God faithfully. Yet He answered anyway.
• Sometimes the enemy tries to unsettle what God is strengthening.
• God’s truth always overrides intimidation and confusion.
• Even dreams can reveal where God wants to restore confidence and clarity. Sometimes a dream is simply God’s way of showing us He is listening—and that He loves us.

This encounter would later shape the middle name I write under, a reminder of where my peace truly comes from.

What this means for you, my dear reader

God knows how to reach us—sometimes through dreams, even in moments of unrest.

If you’ve ever awakened with fear or had a dream that lingered in your spirit, ask Him what He wants you to understand. He is faithful to speak with clarity, to protect your peace, and to remind you who you are in Him.