3 Categories in the Bible:

• Some things we shouldn’t imagine
• Some things we can’t imagine
• Some things we should imagine

1. My imagination shapes my life

    “…For as a man thinks in his heart, so he is.”  - Proverbs 23:7 (KJV)
    “Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts.”  Proverbs 4:23 (TEV)
God’s warning about Babel:
The Lord said, “Now that they are one people speaking one language, this is only the beginning of what they will do.  Now nothing they have imagined they can do will be impossible for them!”  - Genesis 11:6 (Amp)

2. Imagining is essential to living by faith

“What is faith?  It is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen.  It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see.” - Hebrews 11:1 (NLT)
“We set our eyes not on what we see but on what we cannot see.  What we see will last only a short time, but what we cannot see will last forever.” - 2 Corinthians 4:18 (NCV)

3. great lives are built around great dreams

“May God enlighten the eyes of your mind so that you can see the hope that his calling holds for you." - Ephesians 1:18 (NJB)
    “Where there is no vision, the people perish . . .” Proverbs 29:18 (KJV)

4. God’s dream for my life is bigger than my dream

“God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams!  He does it not by pushing us around but by his Spirit working deeply and gently within us." - Ephesians 3:20 (Mes)
Let the size of my God, determine the size of my goals

5. Doubt is the enemy of imagination

         “If you need wisdom, just ask God for it, because He is generous and enjoys giving to everyone.  But when you ask God, you must believe in faith and not doubt.  For a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is driven back and forth, and tossed about by the wind.  Such doubters cannot decide about anything they do, so they should not imagine receiving anything from the Lord.” - James 1:5-7
        “The man said, ‘Please heal my son if you can.’  Jesus replied, ‘What do you mean, “If I can?”  Anything is possible IF a person believes.’  The father replied, ‘I do believe, but help me not to doubt!’”  Mark 9:22-24 (NLT)

6. God’s Spirit and God’s Word fuel my imagination

        “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another helper who will be with you forever.  That helper is the Spirit of Truth . . . you know him because he lives with you and will be IN you!”  John 14:16-17 (GW)
        “Open my eyes to see the wonderful truths in your law . . . Help me understand the meaning of your commandments, and I will meditate on    your wonderful miracles.”      Psalm 119:18, 27 (NLT)
              THE KEY: A DAILY QUIET TIME   
        “The Sovereign Lord has given me his words of wisdom, so I know what to say to all these weary ones.  Morning by morning he wakens me and opens my understanding to his will.”     Isaiah 50:4 (NLT)

7. Growing my character will clarify my vision

        “To your faith, add goodness; and to your goodness, add knowledge; and to your knowledge, add self-control; and to your self-control, add patience; and to your patience, add service for God; and to your service for God, add kindness for your brothers and sisters in Christ; and to this kindness, add love for everyone.  IF all these things are in you and are growing, they will help you to be useful and productive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.  But anyone who does not have these things cannot see clearly.” -  2 Peter 1:5-9 (NCV)

8. If a dream is from God, it will be connected somehow to His Church & Plan for the World

        “If you try to keep your life for yourself, you will lose it.  But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will find true life.” -  Mark 8:35 (NLT)