Imagine

 

2/10/2020

Isaiah 40:26 “Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things.”

My son is a writer. God has gifted him with a vast and vivid imagination, a deep sense of wonder, and a powerful vision. He creates worlds and their inhabitants  that are sometimes fantastical, and sometimes profoundly real. He excels in character development, often filling pages with deeply flawed individuals with rich and layered personalities. He sincerely cares for the inhabitants of the worlds he conceives, and as he is writing, he listens to each voice as he nurtures them along. Sure, many of his protagonist go through some kind of battle or trauma, but he always imbues them with a particular strength that is distinct to each one. He never writes from an outline, but instead brainstorms all of his ideas, and is able to retain that information in his mind. That is certainly a gift. He is so connected to his characters, that he carries them around with him always.

Today, Chambers is asking about our imagination as believers. This struck me as odd at first, because I do not equate God with anything imaginary. I had to meditate and pray on this for a bit. After a while, it became clear that Chambers is asking if we can imagine all that God can do. When I view the vastness of the ocean, majesty of a mountain, or delicacy of a butterfly, do I see only nature, or the magnificence of the brush with which He paints? When I pray, do I come before the God of all creation firmly believing that He will use me? Do I believe He will provide? Can I imagine that His love for me is the most powerful force in the world? Is my God bigger and more majestic than anything my mind can conceive? Do I believe He made me to be just the way I am? Can I envision the peace, comfort, and strength He will provide through His Holy Spirit? Do I understand that he knows my heart? Can I expect and know that if I am poured out for others, He will refresh my soul? Can I imagine and believe as a child does, without guile and with my whole heart, or have I been jaded by my circumstances?

Chambers says, “If your imagination is starved, do not look back to your own experience; it is God Whom you need.”

Isn’t it true that if my son cares so much for, and listens so intently to, the characters he creates, my Creator would do vastly more for me?