Annie
Scriptures: Isaiah 26:3 Luke 22 Philippians 4:8 Isaiah 50:7 Perfect, absolute peace surrounds those whose imaginations are consumed with you; they confidently trust in you. (The Passion translation)
Imagination is a wonderful thing. Without imagination the world would lack so many beautiful artworks, creative poetry and writings that surround us. Without imagination, would we look at a sunset, or a sunrise, or the majesty of the mountains in the same way? Would we appreciate the beauty that God has created without our imagination?
Dwelling on God. What exactly does that mean? When we dwell on God, it means that all of our focus is on Him, on His word, but more importantly on His Person. When speaking of the peace that comes to those who choose to set their minds on God, The Passion translation says, “whose imaginations are consumed with God”.
When our imaginations are consumed with God, we can be transported with Him, we can be in the moment with Him. We can stand beside Moses as he marvelled at the bush that was not eaten up by the fire. We can crawl along with Gideon and feel the amazement that broken pots with the lights in can disperse a huge army and bring victory.
When our imaginations are consumed with God, we can stand beside Mary and listen as the angel told her she was highly favoured and would bear the Son of God within her womb.
Or we can sit with the thousands on the hillside and watch as a small boy takes his lunch up to the disciples. A lunch that suddenly would feed thousands and thousands of people.
We can be transported back to that awful night in the garden when our Saviour sweat great drops of blood, crying out to His Father to use any other way if it was possible. We can hide in the shadows as the soldiers take Him away as a Lamb to the slaughter. We can listen in disbelief as all the lies were spouted against him. And, as the night drags on, we can witness the agony of Peter as he betrayed his Lord.
We can weep as the crowd cried out, Crucify Him, crucify him. The same crowd that only days before had cried Hosanna Hosanna. When our imaginations are consumed with God, we can stand in aweand wonder gazing at the empty tomb.
Dwelling on God is not an academic exercise; dwelling on God is allowing ourselves to take his word and let it become real within us. Let the pictures be real to us. Let every sound, let every sight, let every miracle, let every teaching become utterly real to us as our imaginations are consumed with God.
Prayer: Abba Father God, let us set our face like flint to allow our imaginations to be utterly consumed with You. To intentionally choose each day to surrender to You and to wholeheartedly dwell on You, whatever we do, wherever we go. Amen
“O you redeemed ones, on whose behalf this strong resolve was made—you who have been bought by the precious blood of this steadfast, resolute Redeemer—come and think awhile of Him, that your hearts may burn within you and that your faces may be set like flints to live and die for Him who lived and died for you!”
— C.H. Spurgeon