By Tom Shanklin

Do you see yourself the way God sees you or is the image inside of you something that you received from past experiences or the traditions of man.

Your imagination can be a great tool for good or evil, blessings or curses. God has a blessing plan for your life. When you receive Jesus Christ He delivers you from the power of every curse. But if you continue to have the wrong picture on the inside, it will greatly hinder God’s work in your life. The image you have on the inside can either help or hinder you from cooperating with God’s blessing plan.

Only the Word of God can paint the appropriate picture on the tablet of your heart, so that you can flow with God’s plan for your life.

Listen to this encouraging podcast to ignite your imagination to release the great power of God in your life.

Notes: HARNESSING YOUR IMAGINATION FOR BLESSINGS

Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree: That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. (Galatians 3:13-14, KJV).

TEXT: O LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, our fathers, keep this for ever in the imagination of the thoughts of the heart of thy people, and prepare their heart unto thee: And give unto Solomon my son a perfect heart, to keep thy commandments, thy testimonies, and thy statutes, and to do all these things, and to build the palace, for the which I have made provision. (1 Chronicles 29:18-19, KJV).

MAIN THOUGHT: Both in our individual lives, and corporately, we can harness our imaginations for bring forth blessings in the earth.

THE POWER OF IMAGINATION

Imagination—def) the formation of a mental image of something that is neither perceived as real nor present to the senses. People speak disparagingly, “Oh that’s just your imagination.” However, imagination is a powerful tool when properly harnessed. Imagination created the light bulb, the United States, great buildings, great organizations, etc. And “the imagination of the heart” is key to moving in the things of God. Gal 3:14 . . . that we might receive the promise of the spirit through faith. This goes beyond mental imaging. Consider Heb. 11:1:

(Amp) Now faith is the assurance (the confirmation, the title-deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality—faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses.

So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. (Romans 10:17, KJV).

HARNESSING THE IMAGINATION OF A GROUP

And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech. (Genesis 11:6-7, KJV).

Through the united vision of the people of Babylon, God saw that they would accomplish that which they had set them to do. In order to stop this ungodly project, it was necessary for him to confound their languages.

If people could unite, so powerfully, for an ungodly purpose, and not be restrained except by an act of God, how much potential could be unleashed by God’s people operating in the direction of the Holy Spirit and according to the expressed will of God in the scriptures, uniting and harnessing their imaginations.

Our church is like a canvass, waiting to be painted.

EVIL IMAGINATION

And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. (Genesis 6:5-6, KJV).

A continual evil imagination is sure to bring forth continual evil.

O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. (Matthew 12:34-35, KJV).

Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. (Jam

es 1:13-15, KJV).

lust=sin=death

word=righteousness=life

On that same pallet (the heart), we can produce either life or death, blessing or cursing

Do not err, my beloved brethren. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God. Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls. But be ye doers of the word, and¨ not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. (James 1:16-25, KJV).

-We are conceived by God’s Word

-His Word will save our souls. .. . attend unto his Word. (Prov 4, Jos. 1:8)

The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. (Psalms 19:7, KJV).

CHANGING YOUR THOUGHTS

Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts,1 neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. (Isaiah 55:7-11, KJV).

Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. (Isaiah 1:18, KJV).

God had to change Abram’s imagination. . .

|And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever. (Genesis 13:14-15, KJV).

And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. (Genesis 15:5, KJV).

(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; (2 Corinthians 10:4-5, KJV).

SEEING GOD AND SEEING YOURSELF CORRECTLY

For I feared thee, because thou art an austere man: thou takeÍst up that thou layedst not down, and reapest that thou didst not sow. And he saith unto him, Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up that I laid not down, and reaping that I did not sow: (Luke 19:21-22, KJV).

For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he. . . (Proverbs 23:7, KJV).

Do you see yourself as:

A hopeless sinner OR the righteousness of God

Failure OR Success

Cursed OR Blessed (Poverty Spirit, poverty image)

For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. (Hebrews 5:13, KJV).

Satan wants to point out all your failures and negative history to prove how unworthy and hopeless you are. He wants to feed your imagination with fear and doubt and hopelessness. . . but if you will harness your imagination with the Word of God and refuse to accept negative input you will begin to build an image inside of you that will produce blessings in your life and through your life.

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