Imagination is often misunderstood. Many people associate it with childhood play, daydreaming, or fantasy. However, teachings shared by Jamie Winship and Donna Winship highlight something deeper. Imagination is not just a creative ability. It is a normal and essential human practice. In fact, we cannot think without using our imagination.
Our imagination shapes how we see God, ourselves, and our future. It quietly influences our emotions, decisions, and beliefs. When guided by truth, imagination becomes a powerful tool for healing, identity, and faith. When guided by lies, it can lead us into fear, division, and spiritual confusion.
Imagination as a Spiritual Gateway
Christian author Leanne Payne described imagination as the ability to “imagine the unforeseen truth.” This means imagination helps us perceive spiritual realities before we fully experience them. It allows us to see ourselves through God’s perspective rather than through past wounds, fear, or insecurity.
However, imagination can also be misused. When it begins to imagine the unforeseen false, it becomes fantasy rooted in deception. This often shows up through worry, lust, greed, or destructive assumptions about ourselves and others. False imagination disconnects us from truth and can create separation, conflict, and emotional distress.
True Imagination vs False Imagination
Understanding the difference between these two forms of imagination helps us guard our hearts and minds.
True Imagination
- Built on truth and reality
- Strengthens connection with God and others
- Supports healing and identity in Christ
- Encourages hope and faith
False Imagination
- Built on lies and distorted beliefs
- Creates separation and fear
- Fuels anxiety, conflict, and destructive thinking
- Leads to spiritual and emotional confusion
Fixing Our Minds on Truth
Scripture teaches us that where we fix our thoughts determines our peace. In The Bible, Isaiah 26:3 reminds us that God keeps in perfect peace those whose minds remain fixed on Him. Similarly, Hebrews 12 encourages believers to fix their eyes on Jesus, who authors and perfects our faith.
When our imagination is anchored in God’s truth, our minds become a place of peace rather than anxiety. We begin to picture life through God’s promises instead of our fears.
Faith Over Fear
Imagination plays a major role in both faith and fear.
Faith is imagining a future with God present and active. It allows us to trust His goodness even when circumstances are uncertain. Scripture tells us that without faith, it is impossible to please God because faith draws us into relationship and trust.
Fear, on the other hand, imagines a future without God. It paints pictures of failure, abandonment, and hopeless outcomes. Fear disconnects us from truth and often leads us into survival thinking instead of Spirit-led living.
Renewing the Imagination
Renewing our imagination is part of renewing our mind. We can intentionally train our imagination by:
- Meditating on Scripture
- Asking God to reveal truth about our identity
- Noticing fearful or negative mental pictures and surrendering them to God
- Visualizing God’s presence in daily situations
- Practicing gratitude and hope-focused thinking
When imagination is surrendered to God, it becomes a channel through which He restores identity, brings peace, and strengthens faith.
A Gentle Invitation
Pause today and notice what pictures are forming in your mind about your life, your future, and your relationship with God. Are those images rooted in truth or fear?
God invites us to partner with Him by allowing our imagination to reflect His truth. As we do, we step into deeper peace, stronger faith, and a clearer understanding of who we are in Him.