14 Days to PeaceSample

You can put an end to worry by joining your imagination to God’s Word. 

When the 12 spies returned from the espionage in the Promised Land, ten of them brought back a fearful report. Their imaginations had run wild in the wrong direction: 

Then the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are.” So they brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying, “The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.” (Numbers 13:30–33, ESV) 

God had sent the spies into the land so they could bring back some of its fruit—so the people could be encouraged with a foretaste of Canaan’s goodness. Instead, their imaginations ran amok with worry about the foes in the land. They imagined the inhabitants to be descendants of the mythical half gods, the Nephilim, and they imagined themselves the size of grasshoppers. 

The problem with worry is that it leads to the thing it contemplates. The spies were worried that they’d die rather than take the land. And, history shows, their worries came true. They wandered in the wilderness for forty years until the generation died off. 

If the basketball player worries about missing the potential game-winning free throw, he’s much more likely to miss it. Worry leads to the negative outcome it envisions. 

Faith, which links the imagination to God’s truth, likewise leads toward the reality it envisions. 

The key to defeating worry is not so much wrangling the negative thoughts as it is harnessing the imagination for God’s purposes. Reformer John Calvin compared the scriptures to eyeglasses. We don’t just look at the Word—we look at everything else through the Word. 

Look at life through the promises of God and start imagining all that can be. Imagination makes you like God—your mind’s eye can envision something that is yet to be. When you let God sanctify your imagination, you can turn negative “what ifs” into positive “what ifs.” And that’s the Gospel!

Questions for Reflection:

1) Is there an enemy in your life that makes you feel like a grasshopper? What worries consume your thoughts?

2) Write down a replacement of those worries with the promises of God. For example, instead of SMALL, you are MORE THAN A CONQUEROR.

3) In Matthew 6:25-34, Jesus encourages us not to be anxious; for if God provides for the birds, how much more must he care for us? Take a moment to cast your cares onto the Lord, and let Him turn your fear into faith.