We fantasize a lot. From grandiose Hollywood productions of “[Insert name]: The Most Kick-Ass Person Who Ever Lived” to microsecond-long vacations from reality to a world we make in our own minds. A world where we get a little more appreciation for the day-to-day things we do. A world where things go our way.
But does fantasizing bring glory to God? There seems to be a fundamental mutual exclusivity between the two. Someone might say, “Yes! I dream about doing great things for God!” I’m not talking about godly ambitions for the future. Fantasizing is the best present manifestation of our present desires we can muster when our desires aren’t met in reality. Someone might still say, “I can fantasize about my present desire for God to be glorified being manifested in the present.” But let’s be honest. (1) How many of our fantasies are about God getting all the glory? (2) Paul says, “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Cor. 10:31) So, if God is glorified in the most menial tasks of life, there is no need for fantasy, because our desire for God to be glorified is met in our desiring that he be glorified in everything in reality. He is really glorified in the lowliest and most insignificant daily tasks. Breathing. Blinking. Eating. To him. His glory is real, not fantastical.
The point is that our fantasies are our “quiet-times” devoted to ourselves. They are prayers that our wills would be done, whether God likes it or not, in reality to some degree as it is in our crooked hearts. In fantasies the world goes to the greatest lengths to satisfy our will for our own glory; in reality, we all we need to do is “set [our] minds on the things that are above [where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God]” (Col. 3:2,[1b]), because the promise is that the glory of Christ is real and those thoughts will be shown to be real on the last day, for “when Christ, who is [our] life appears, then [we] also will appear with him in glory.” (3:4) Our fantasies will never appear in glory; to set our minds on Christ is not to fantasize, for it is to set our minds on the true one (Titus 1:2), who is the only glorious one (Rom. 11:36), is to know His fantasy, which is reality (Rom. 11:33-36; 1 Cor. 2:11-16).
To close, we know that God knows our thoughts (even our fantasies; “Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, you know it altogether.” Psalm 139:4), but the question we need to ask ourselves is: “Do we know God in our thoughts? Or do we only know ourselves?” Do we finish the Psalm as David does, praying, “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (139:23-24)? When we “be” (as Zuber puts it), do we “be” in God’s world under the covenant of Grace, or do we “be” with one foot in reality and one foot in a fantastical world where we are the hero? Where we deserving. Where we have rights. Where we are the creators. Do we have a place we’ve created where we can escape to and say with the Trainman, “Here, I make the rules. Here, I’m God.”
