“Now Joseph had a dream”
Genesis 37:5

My son, David, has had an incredible imagination since he was very young. He used to get in trouble whenever he was little for daydreaming too much. In school, it was hard for him to stay focused as he would sit in class and his mind would begin to travel to more exciting places and adventures. He used to love to tell stories of imaginary worlds and creatures. I still remember putting him in bed at night and instead of reading to him (or after reading to him) he wanted to tell me a story. God gifted him with his imaginative mind. Now, the little boy who used to get in trouble for daydreaming in class is the teacher! 

Living in an overly image driven world does not leave as much room for imagination. Watching a movie does not allow the mind to create and grow as reading allows. I think it does the soul good to often meditate on God, his nature and character. He is all goodness and holiness. So many of the psalms are devoted to nothing other than magnifying the name of the Lord and his ways. As Christians, I think this is a practice that we do not keep very well. How often do you set aside time in your life to think about God? Our world is dominated with thoughts and images that are degrading and evil. Many times we place our time on the lesser evil rather than the godly and the good. God created the mind and wants us to fill it with thoughts of the heavenly. Remember Paul’s words, “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things” (Philippians 4:8).  

Joseph was filled with dreams of God’s vision for his life. Paul lived seeking to be obedient to the “heavenly vision” (Acts 26:19). God’s people settle for lesser visions and life. Instead, our minds are filled with counterfeit gods of self and passing pleasures. Meditate on the holy. Read the Word of God and “think on these things.” Dream, imagine, and seek the Lord with your whole heart. You will find that God has more to offer than any substitute. The vision of God for mankind is no dream or fairy tale. Think about that.