Beyond Our Imagination

This morning I was reading from Paul's letter to the Ephesians 3:20-21 NIV:

[20] "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, [21] to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."

As I was reading this verse, I was reminded of a book that I have been reading called "Culture of Honor" by Danny Silk. This is an excellent book and one that I realty should read over and over. One of the things that he talks about is having a wealth mind-set as a Kingdom perspective. He talks about the difference between a poverty, middle-class and wealth mind-set as experienced in the church. I found his thinking intriguing and enlightening.

This verse reminds me of his thoughts regarding the wealth mind-set. When we look at what Paul says, he is basically saying God is capable of doing anything, even more than we can ever imagine. That is a very challenging and hopefully freeing statement. God does not just limit himself to our little earthly imaginations, to only our direst needs, but rather is a God of extravagance, and immeasurability. In other words, He is beyond our ability to think.

When Danny was talking about the wealth mind-set, he referenced the church's consistent reliance on earthly thinking, and human wisdom in its efforts to govern, lead, teach, and grow. He talks about how this is more of a poor or middle class perspective, because we don't think there is anything really available to us in the supernatural realm, that which God controls, and that which is heavenly. We don't think the Holy Spirit really does much more than guide us to wise thinking, and that we, within our earthly abilities, need to deal with people as they are, sinners one and all. So, we have limited our capabilities to what we can think up, and most of that is related to how we can keep people from sinning.

The opportunity we have in God is to step into our true identities as sons and daughters of the King. He has given us all we need in the Holy Spirit to see Heaven's realities become earthly realities. He wants to work the supernatural through the Church, and wants to take us beyond our imaginations. He is the King of the Universe, and everything He has is ours for the asking. As Jesus said in Matthew 7:7-8: “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened." There is an open door to Heaven if we will but ask.

One of the things the Lord has spoken to me over and over again is to "not settle for less than what He wants to provide". I grew up within a frugal family culture and my propensity is to make do with what is available,. This is not a bad thing, but it is not the heart of the Lord for us, and it is not a characteristic of the Kingdom. The Lord wants us to ask for the improbable, the impossible, the world-changing stuff. The context of these verses is Paul speaking about the mission he has been given to preach the good news to the gentiles, in other words the rest of the known world - that is certainly beyond my imagination.

In the Gospels, Jesus demonstrates just little glimpses of the Kingdom reality of abundance and wealth when He heals, when he multiplies the food, when He deals with the demonized and sinners, when He cleanses the Lepers. He never stops with what would be sufficient, or just enough. He feeds five thousand, and has enough afterward to fill 12 baskets, after everyone has eaten their fill. He doesn't just forgive the sins of the man on the cot, but heals him so completely that He is able to stand, walk and even carry his own cot. He doesn't just bind the power of demons, He completely casts them out of the people they are afflicting, so much so that their lives are radically transformed, as in the life of the Gadarene demoniac who goes from being a naked, crazy man living among the tombs, to one of the first evangelists spreading the good news of Jesus to the ten cities. He doesn't just cleanse the lepers, but touches them, restores them and heals them completely. We serve a God of abundance, a God of the impossible, and yet we tend to settle for the things we can do under our own power and wisdom.

God wants to expand our understanding, our mind-set so that we can faithfully represent His nature and the culture of the Kingdom. He wants us to allow the Holy Spirit within us to lead us to the impossible, to things beyond our wildest imaginations, to a place of both reliance on, and regular experience of the supernatural. He wants to birth Heavenly realities in our midst, and cause all the world to see His Glory. We are called to be world changers, and the only way we can do that is if we learn to ask, seek and knock, expecting God "to do immeasurably more than all we can ask or imagine".

Oh Lord, I pray that You impart to us all a new mind-set, one that is in line with Your desires to change this world. Help us to step into, and embrace this Heavenly mind-set, this expectation of the improbable, the impossible, and the mind-blowing. Lord, we want to represent You correctly, and You are all powerful, all knowing and the creator of all things! You are the most creative, dynamic, powerful, compassionate, merciful, faithful, fun, and forgiving individual in the universe. Help us to turn to You and expect You to reveal Yourself through the church, through the Body of Christ present, as You promised You would. Lord, help us to step beyond our imaginations into the Your reality.