Redeemed Imagination
Smouldering by Lilias Trotter
I invite you to recall a rescue story. You know, a hiker saved from a bear, a lost child reunited with family, a traveler who was given miraculous aid. Maybe it’s from your own history, or maybe it’s an ancient story from Scripture.
Telling these rescue stories embodies Isaiah 63:7-9 –
I will tell of the kindness of the Lord, the deeds for which He is to be praised, according to his compassion and many kindnesses. In all their distress He too was distressed. And the angel of His presence saved them. In His love and mercy, He redeemed them. He lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.
But encountering those stories also raises questions: Can I imagine that God might also bring a rescue into my life? And, how can I help others have a renewed hope that God will rescue them – and finish the work that He has begun?
To recover a clear focus on the rescuing power of God, I want to suggest an unlikely resource: a redeemed imagination.
Our God has shown us how He works - through the life stories of others and through His Word. And He has promised to work "beyond what we can ask or think," to "finish what he has begun," and (from Isaiah 43:19) that He will do a new thing, that He will make a way in the wilderness, that He will transform the desert with His river. But, to walk in Hope as we wait for His promises to unfold, for history to repeat itself, we need to have a redeemed imagination.
As we consider this, it is important to remember that imagination is not the same as fantasy. Imagination is based in reality.
The concept of a redeemed imagination is woven throughout the Bible. Psalm 42:5 entreats us, “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation.”
Without a redeemed imagination, there is no hope.
Without a redeemed imagination, there is no anticipation.
Without a redeemed imagination, there is no yearning for something more than what we are now experiencing.
Without a redeemed imagination, we can’t connect deeply with the past. We won’t be able to grasp the Biblical narrative at any depth. We will miss the joy of the Magi, the amazement of the boy & fishes, the pain of the betrayal in the Garden, and the zeal of Pentecost. And without a redeemed imagination, we can’t anticipate the future. We will not have confidence in the reality of Heaven. Since we’ve never been there, how can we have a certain hope that it’s real? Without a redeemed imagination, there is no hope.
For some reason, it's easy for us to walk with an unredeemed imagination; we can easily imagine being crushed, driven to despair, abandoned, and destroyed - and imagine that Rodents of Unusual Size from The Princess Bride are definitely a reality. But imagining God bringing resurrection power to our situation doesn't come as easily - unless our imaginations are redeemed.
Lilias Trotter was a gifted artist, writer, and global worker to Algeria in the late 1800’s. When she wrote "The Glory of the Impossible," she said, "The history of His wonders in the past is a constant succession of new things, and He is not at the end of His resources yet." His resources are not depleted! God has more to give us. He has more to show us. He has more for us.
Can we imagine that? Can we hope for that?
Can we hear Isaiah 43:19 with a redeemed imagination? Behold I am doing a new thing. Now it springs forth. Do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. Can we imagine that the new things He will do? Can we begin to fathom that the way through the wilderness will satisfy – that the rivers in the desert will be enough?
If we are going to walk as people of hope, we need God to do that transformational work within us.
Practice
Take some time to write out the promise of Isaiah 43:19 on a bookmark or notecard. As you write, pause often and ask God:
What new thing do You want to do in me?
What new thing do You want to do in the lives of those I lead and influence?
Help me to perceive what You are doing in me.
What different road are you making and inviting me to follow?
What refreshing river are you creating for me?
What part of my life needs an infusion of hope?
Renew my mind and help me to think Your thoughts after You.
Stir my anticipation for what You will bring, and preserve my wonder at what You do.
Then, take a minute to listen to Living Hope by Phil Wickam.
Imagine what God is going to do in you and around you!