Imagination Engaged

In their recent book, Imagination Redeemed (Crossway, 2015), Gene Veith and Matthew Ristuccia remind us of the role imagination plays in our life in Christ. Veith writes:

When we read the Bible with our imaginations fully engaged, the biblical truths become personal. And a sanctified imagination can help us direct our choices and set plans toward a Christ-centered future.

Imagination brings us back to the cross and the resurrection of Jesus. Imagination takes us to the hope we have in Christ for what life with Him will be like after we die. And in the Scriptures, in both Testaments, God gives us images to shape our lives of service as Christians. The law, the prophets, and Jesus Himself present pictures of people in prison, the hungry, the sick, the oppressed, and the poor. We imagine them, we imagine Christ, and we respond.

So when Jesus says in Matthew 25:35, “I was hungry, and you gave me food,” we picture a hungry child, wondering when or if she will eat again. Our faith-driven imagination puts that together with an image of Christ, and we “set plans for a Christ-centered future.” We do what we can to feed that child.

With this I am inviting you to put your Scripture-shaped imagination to work. With our district-wide Feed My Starving Children MobilePack, we have an opportunity to go where our Christian imagination takes us – from the heart and words of Jesus, to our hands, to the mouth of a hungry child.

On November 10-12, the Minnesota South District will gather at four locations around the district to pack one million meals for the hungry. Feed My Starving Children has partners in over 60 nations who will distribute the meals we pack. Most recently, FMSC has begun a partnership which will bring food to the hungry who are suffering in Syria. We need 5000 volunteers to pack one million meals. We hope that each participant will also raise 540-$50 to pay forward future projects of Feed My Starving Children.

In the simple act of packing food for the hungry I believe 5000+ of us in the Minnesota South District will be given a deeper oneness in Christ. Concord in confession is crucial in our life together, but so is the harmony the Spirit brings when we love the neighbor, in this case, the hungry neighbor far away. In loving and serving the neighbor in the name of Jesus, our love for one another is deepened.

So please go to our website, www.mnsdistrict.org, to learn more about this opportunity. Imagine Jesus, saying, “When you did it the least of these, you did it to me.” Imagine a hungry child not hungry any more. Then follow where your imagination takes you. Pack meals in Jesus ‘name.