God's Gift of Imagination

God's gift of the human imagination is limitless.  We can go on a "date" with our brains, alone in a coffee shop and fly to a land of possibilities.  Armed with pen and paper plus an open mind, great things can be created.  Albert Einstein said, "Imagination is more important than knowledge." Knowledge, we can learn from books and people, but imagination is unique to each one of us.  There can never be two same imaginations, like a thumbprint or a voice print.  A good imagination gives us an edge.  Like mastering any craft, imagination needs practice. The lesser you use it, the shallower it gets.  The more you use it, the broader your vision becomes.

The challenge  is closing the gap between our imagination and current reality.  Achieve this and we'll have progress.  Robert Orben wrote, “There are only two kinds of people in this world. The realists and the dreamers. The realists know where they are going and the dreamers have already been there.” 

It is good to store ideas in a notebook or on an online journal. Many of these ideas may not seem relevant today, even bordering to crazy funny.  But as time progresses, these ideas if anointed, will take root and bloom at the time most needed.  Just watch Back to the Future and you'll realize that some things there, like talking face to face on a screen, are already happening today.  

Don't be afraid to dream, for if the vision is clear, the resources will fall into place.  People contribute to something they believe in. Just look at the amazing amount of knowledge people share for free to Wikipedia or the solutions people provide in online forums, or the story of how the American people contributed to finance the Statue of Liberty. In faith, they just need to see what you see, and believe in what you believe.

Thomas answered and said to him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.” John 20:28

Are we a "doubting Thomas?"  We need to have great faith for God's plans in our lives to happen.  In the 3 years of Christ's ministry on earth, many times the Lord described the vision of the Kingdom of God in ways we can understand, through parables.  Christ shared His vision, the Father's will, and people followed and contributed.  

It's amazing that even if we take a shot in imagining how great God is, the reality of His greatness will still be unfathomable. He is beyond imagination. 

Let us use God's gift of imagination to do great things for Him. After all, God invented imagination, and we are to utilize it to build His kingdom.

Translating Vision Into Reality

I love this definition on leadership by Warren Bennis, an American scholar and pioneer of  the field of Leadership Studies. He says, "Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality."


When leading, many of us get caught up in the details.  And usually, our energies are drained in these details that we lose sight of the bigger vision.  We need to empower people who can manage these "details" and focus on making the vision into reality.  Thus, for us to be on track in leading, allow me to share my recent learning:

1. Draw a Road Map. Begin with drawing up the vision (which is the destination of the road map), then work backwards to where you are now.  Working backwards means to continually ask, "How can the vision be achieved?"

2. Look for People who can move you Forward.  We enlist the people who can best deliver the requirements to move us forward in the road map.  Many times we commit the mistake of getting the people first and trying to match the task.  We have to define the task first, then look for the people who can achieve it.

3.  Empower Your Team. It is important that your team embraces the vision and knows exactly how they are contributing towards it.  Teamwork and trust helps us move forward faster. As Covey would put it, "The Speed of Trust."

4. Apply Kaizen. Kaizen, a japanese word means "Change for the better."  As we strive towards our vision, we seek for continuous improvement. We can apply the PDCA cycle which is, "Plan-Do-Check-Adjust."  Using this cycle, we are able to enhance our methods and advance further towards our vision.  We do all these in prayer with the power of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus came from heaven to earth to save us from our sins, to set us free (Luke 4). This was His vision, His road map while on earth.  He called the 12 apostles and empowered them.  He died for our sins, and brought salvation to mankind. And before ascending into heaven, he tells His apostles, "Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes in me will do the works that I do, and will do greater ones than these, because I am going to the Father (John 14:12). Jesus tells them that they will do greater things (like Kaizen) because the Father will send the Holy Spirit.


Christ has called us to lead with vision. Let us once again fall in love with the vision that we have and share this romance with those we lead.