Awaking Wonder: Becoming the Mentor Your Child Needsናሙና

The Importance of Wonder and Imagination in Learning 

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints.

Ephesians 1:18

The apostle Paul wrote of wonder and imagination playing a part in the lives of those who would know Christ. When he prays that the “eyes of your heart” be enlightened, he is saying he desires that eyes of the place inside us—where we have our heart, mind, soul, and personality moving in unity to create our inner self—be awakened to the countless resources of truth, comfort, companionship, eternal love, and sublime beauty of God. 

Isn’t this what faith is, the seeing with the eyes of our heart what we cannot see with our physical eyes? Seeing with the eyes of our heart combines our mind that acquires truth, our heart that imagines and fills in context and story details, and our soul instructed by the Holy Spirit to understand nuances of light, goodness, and beauty. And so, as we seek to educate our children about our transcendent, infinite God, we show them His reality by exploring what we can all see and wonder at and imagine when we view the art of His night sky. We ponder profound thoughts by reading the Word that tells us His stories and learning about the heavens and creation with our mind, which can study and access scientific details about stars and galaxies and synthesize it together. But to fully engage in the transcendence of God, they must imagine, wonder, and ponder the truths, His creation, and His story. 

God created us to soar, to dance, to fly—to live with gusto as we enjoy and discover the magnificence of the mysteries He has strewn throughout creation. He longs for us to hear His whispers throughout the day, to see the shadows of His ways moment by moment. Not only that, but He also promises to walk with us through each day. Just as the sails catch the wind, letting the boat glide effortlessly through the water, so when our hearts are filled with the Spirit of God, we move ahead through life unburdened and with more ease. Faith in God must be passed on in every generation as a foundation of how to live, how to see life, and how to serve God if our culture is going to keep Christianity alive. And the fragrance we leave with children must be something beautiful and authentic. 

In considering the need for our children to engage in wonder and imagination, we have to start with ourselves. What habits do you have that help build your own capacity to be enthralled with all God has created so you can model that for your child?