Sanctified Imagination

"Left to myself, my imagination is a lunatic ricocheting around the walls of my mind. The wild-eyed, slobbering imagination is destructive. An untamed imagination is the playground and rat wheel for worry, lust, bitterness, greed, and unholy fantasies. Will my imagination function as a gift from God or as a soul-decaying cotton candy from the Enemy?"
Jean Fleming, Pursue the Intentional Life

Until I read this passage, I wasn't thinking much about imagination. We see it in our kids and think it's cute, but do we recognize what a major role imagination plays in our own grown-up minds? Fear, dread, anticipation, and excitement are all functions of imagination. Our minds conjure up all sorts of pictures and expectations about what's coming up. We imagine how things are going to play out, and our emotions respond according to the picture the imagination has crafted.

Jean Fleming, in her wisdom, prescribes a sanctified imagination. She also calls it a disciplined imagination. The idea is the same: it's an imagination brought under the control of the Holy Spirit. God's the one who created us with imagination; surely it's one of the ways we are created in His image. He put it there to guide us to Him. Who can begin to fathom His greatness without a deeply engaged imagination? Who can ponder heaven except through imagination? When we read the Bible, we read through imagination. We picture Jesus scribbling in the sand before the condemned woman. We imagine her sense of dread and fear and shame and horror. We put ourselves in her place when Jesus tells her to go and sin no more. We can imagine her shock and relief, her overwhelming gratitude. Our imaginations take us there.

Without imagination, the parables mean nothing. Jesus very rarely came right out and explained them. He left it to the people in His hearing. He left it to us. Guided by Holy Spirit-infused imagination, we can begin putting the pieces together, making connections, seeing Kingdom values through earthly examples.

We can only begin to understand the Trinity relationship through imagination. Or the transfiguration, the crucifixion, and the resurrection. The Bible gives us good details and eyewitness accounts, but how can we begin to take them in if not through our imaginations?

Like every other good thing given to us by God, though, imaginations can so easily become corrupt. A mind ruled by uncontrolled imagination can become schizophrenic. A body ruled by untamed imagination can become enslaved to porn and twisted desire. A heart left to its own imagination places unrealistic expectations on its loves and is chronically disappointed.

Let's make this more practical. Sanctified imagination is a choice. When I picture my kids leaving the nest, I can imagine myself feeling sad, lonely, and purposeless, or I can imagine the wonderful new opportunities I'll have (not to mention the cute little car I'll get to drive). When I ponder my own old age, I can imagine sickness and hopelessness, or I can imagine the sweet wisdom and contentment that come with age. If I face a cancer diagnosis, will I imagine it destroying my life, or will I imagine how God will use it for my good? Do I anticipate the future with fear and worry or with peace and hope? It all boils down to my imagination. Will I bring it under the control of the Holy Spirit, or will I let it become the lunatic ricocheting around the walls of my mind?

Lord, sanctify every part of me, even the parts of me I don't think much about. I give You control of my imagination. Tame it. Sanctify it. Use it to give me a fuller understanding of who You are.