(August 16, 2009)

How often do we proofread? Headlines: "Include Your Children When Baking Cookies", "Police Begin Campaign To Run Down Jaywalkers", "War Dims Hope For Peace", "New Study For Obesity Looks For Larger Test Group", "Typhoon Rips Through Cemetary: Hundreds Dead". Sometimes there are typos: "Smith Is Rabid Typist", "Thou Shall Commit Adultery". Even with editors and proofreaders, we still make mistakes.

Paul prayed that the Ephesians would have the fullness of God, the annointing of God and more. He prayed that they would know that He was able to do even more. Paul knew that God wants them (and us) to have all that He has. Our faith is dictated by our experiences, so, therefore, we tend to work so hard to try to please God, to be perfect for God. God can do so much more than we can ask or imagine. The "typo" is not in the Bible or in God's Word, it's in our belief. We don't listen to what we hear from God. We don't act upon what God orders us to do. We need to ask big and expect big. We need to take spiritual risks.

Imagination is part of the equation. We need to learn to use the imagination that God gave us. Our imagination drives us to miraculous things in the Name of Jesus. It allows you to believe more and to target your prayer. If we pray haphazardly without a targeted vision, we tend to pray for small things and we may receive small results. Dream big, pray big, expect big.

But, what if we prayed big, but it didn't happen? What if He didn't answer in the way we thought He should answer? This is where the imagination comes in. We can think big, but we always must allow God's will to trump our own. We need to understand that sometimes prayers are answered, but sometimes they aren't for our own good, or they are answered in a different way or form. We can't put God in a box and expect things to happen that way that we want it to work.

Understand that God works outside of our five senses and that we need to just trust God and have faith. Imagine in full color. Begin to believe that God can exceed all that we can believe or seek. And that's no typo.

- Jon Bruney