A Kingdom imagination is a necessary ingredient for a fullness of life. I have come to believe that over the past few weeks. And I have been challenged to increase my Kingdom imagination to more and more awareness of what God may be doing around me.

One of the first things I have learned about living with a Kingdom imagination has been to live with expectancy. God is doing a lot of things around me, within me, and through me, and I have been learning to look forward to those things with a sense of urgent expectancy, waiting to see what he’s doing as he reveals it.

As I have been waiting with that sense of expectancy, I have sense my heart being awakened in new and deeper ways.

God has given me gifts and talents and passions. He’s given you the same things, gifts and talents and passions. What I have seen in my life is that I have grown accustomed to the way I have been doing things, and have let my excitement for those things slip a little. Those things that used to excite me and make my pulse race have grown commonplace and mundane.

I didn’t intend for this to happen, but it did anyway. And to be honest, it bothers me. A lot.

Take my role as a parent, for example. When my kids were small, I looked forward to what God would eventually grow them into, and what he would do through them. But somehow, the everyday challenges of parenting have taken over, and sometimes I simply seek to get through the days as they come. I have to deal with attitudes, and misbehavior. I have to motivate them and push them. And sometimes, that just tedious.

As I have started to watch my own life with expectancy, I have also begun to watch their lives, too. And I have sensed a renewal of that spark, that excitement for what God might be doing in their lives. God has awakened – or perhaps reawakened – that passion in my heart.

I have seen this in multiple areas of my life. What once brought me excitement has become something I take for granted. And frankly, I don’t want to take anything from God for granted.

I think that this is probably a natural result of living with expectancy, but it has been a bit of a surprise as I have felt a renewal of passions and that I once felt tremendous excitement over. I am grateful those things are being rekindled.

This has implications in every area of my life. Obviously, it will generate momentum in the parenting example I just shared. But it will also provide impetus in my personal growth, in the effects of my ministry in the church where I serve, in my marriage, my friendships, and so much more.

One thing I do know: a numb heart will never experience the fullness of God that he desires to fill it with. But a heart that has been awakened with a Kingdom imagination for all of these different areas will be filled to the overflowing. Maybe that’s why it’s so critical to protect the heart above all else (Proverbs 4:23). Because a protected heart is fertile ground for God to awaken.

So how’s your heart?

Question: As you look at the state of your heart, do you need to experience an awakening? Or perhaps a reawakening? What kind of results might that have in your Kingdom imagination? You can leave a comment by clicking here.