Once we have grown curious about the things of God, Jesus invites us to imagine a life in which He is not just interesting, but true! And not just simply true, but unavoidably worth rearranging everything around. This isn't about fantasy or escape, needing something impossible to be true; imagination is where the possibility of looking like Jesus starts to feel real enough to compel us to move beyond what we know.
This process plays out throughout Scripture. Abraham had to imagine a future he could not yet see. The disciples had to imagine a kingdom that looked nothing like the one they expected. The Great Commission itself (“Go and make disciples of all nations”) required imagination: “Go” meant learning who Jesus is, copying Him, and representing Him. “All nations” required them to imagine a whole new way of life beyond anything they had experienced.
Over and over again, we see the invitation of Imagination is simple and costly: believe that God is making all things new, and then begin to live as if it is true.
IMAGINATION
The Formation Way at Nu Church
At Nu Church, spiritual formation is the lifelong process of being shaped into the image of Christ for the sake of others. We describe this journey in three interconnected and simultaneous movements:
Know Christ — What we believe (the Good News, the Bible, the Holy Spirit, and the Church). This is the foundation. Knowing Christ is the starting point and the center around which all formation happens. What we believe about who He is and what He has done is the starting point for true biblical formation.
Experience Christ — How we are formed. This is the personal progression of Curiosity → Imagination → Informed Belief → Transformation through Community. The ongoing process of wrestling with what we have come to know about Jesus until those beliefs begin to shape how we actually live.
Encounter Christ — Where we are formed. In the communal spaces of the church (Sunday Gatherings, Courses, Communities, and Circles) we live out what we believe as true representatives of Jesus, partnering with Him in making all things new.
How Imagination Fits in Formation
Imagination is the second movement of Experience Christ. Once curiosity has opened a door, Imagination is the invitation to step through it. We begin to picture what it would actually mean if the story of Jesus were true, and to begin living as if God really does new things in old and ordinary places.
Many people stop here. Even when they are curious, the moment they are asked to imagine a life of following Jesus that looks different from what they know, they pull back and lose the wonder. We either can’t imagine how the story matters, or we can’t imagine letting go of our current life enough to step into it.
Imagination is the place where our hesitations are confronted, and God begins to shape the way we see the world. Seeing ourselves and the world around us as He does.
Where to Start
Discipleship isn’t linear. It is a path that circles the person of Jesus, and each loop brings us closer. Wherever you are, start with the question that curiosity has already stirred in you, and ask:
“What would it look like if this were true… and I actually lived as if it were?”
Prompts
Curiosity has already stirred something in you. Imagination asks what you will do with it.
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What has curiosity made me wonder about Jesus or His way of life?
What would life look like if that were actually true, and I began to live as if it were?
What do I still not know that keeps this from feeling real?
What is holding me back from rearranging my life around this possibility?
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Bring these questions to God, to Scripture, and to people who are further along the path. Let them help you see both the beauty of what could be and the places where you still need truth to take root.
Walking With Others
If you are helping someone else in their formation, Imagination is a tender place. Do not rush them toward certainty or action. Instead, help them stay with the “what if.” Sit with them in the possibility. Point them toward Jesus and toward the people of God who can help them see what this life might look like in real time. The goal is not to force a decision, but to keep the heart open to a different kind of future.
Where To Go Next
Imagination is meant to lead somewhere. When the possibility of a new life begins to feel real, the next movement within Experience Christ is Informed Belief. This is the quiet, steady work of letting the truth of who God is reshape the way we see everything.
Practice
I’m starting to imagine life differently…
Am I regularly participating in Gatherings where the story of God stirs my heart?
Am I in Community (Groups or Circles) where others help me envision what this could look like in real life?
IMAGINATION
RESOURCES
Once we have grown curious about the things of God, He invites us to imagine a life in which He actually does what He says He can do, and to begin living as partners in that work.
This often-missed step is the one that lets us feel the shape of a truth before we can fully explain it. Reason and intellect are vital in the process of formation, but imagination is what gives reason meaning. Imagination is a lived sense that this might actually be true, and that it matters.