Pastor Chris Seay continues our series drawing from Scripture and the unique insight of writer and theologian C.S. Lewis to teach on the necessity of imagination as we consider our part in God's story; the kind of imagination through which we join in the audacity of the prophets, gain sight for the unseen, rediscover the joy of play, and deepen our love and capacity for prayer.
Text
Matthew 14:22-33
Ephesians 6:12
But it must not be supposed that I am in any sense putting forward the imagination as the organ of truth. We are not talking of truth, but of meaning: meaning which is the antecedent condition both of truth and falsehood, whose antithesis is not error but nonsense. I am a rationalist. For me, reason is the natural organ of truth; but imagination is the organ of meaning. Imagination, producing new metaphors or revivifying old, is not the cause of truth, but its condition. It is, I confess, undeniable that such a view indirectly implies a kind of truth or rightness in the imagination itself.
— C.S. Lewis
Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited, whereas imagination embraces the entire world, stimulating progress, giving birth to evolution.
— Albert Einstein
Reality can be beaten with enough imagination.
— Mark Twain
Imagination is the only weapon in the war against reality.
― Jules de Gaultier
The great joy of play, fantasy and imagination is that for a time we are utterly spontaneous, free to imagine anything. In such a state of pure being, no thought is ‘unthinkable’. Nothing is ‘unimaginable.’ That is why play and the imagination tend to put us in touch with material that is ordinarily repressed.
— C.G. Jung
Reflection
Chris again encouraged us to develop our imagination through voracious reading. Firstly, The Bible would be a great place to start. We also continue to encourage you to join our "Book Club". More information on those selections can be found HERE. The next author to join us in teaching will be Tracy Wilde, writer of Finding The Lost Art Of Empathy.
We have been made in the image of our creator God. What was your most recent act of creativity? If you don't currently have a creative outlet in your life, how might that change?
Chris asked us to consider praying with a greater sense of awe and imagination. Do you believe that Jesus, who said that he is your friend, is truly with you as you pray? How might that change the way you pray this week; to open yourself up to the possibility of a conversation?
Worship Set
I Need Thee Every Hour
Be Thou My Vision
Dust We Are And Shall Return
Jesus Is King
Just As I Am
Come To Me