You can't defeat a giant you can't imagine defeating

​Many of us have giants we want to take down in our lives. Many of us don't take them down NOT because we aren't giant enough to do so, but because we fail to imagine that we are.

A popular bible story is the story of David and Goliath. We hear it from the time we're old enough to hear bible stories. And as the story goes, a small shepherd boy takes down a giant with a simple slingshot and a stone.

The moral of the story is we're all capable of more than we believe we are.

We often overlook that part of the story. That part about belief. Because it's important to note that before David took down the giant, he BELIEVED he'd take down the giant.

I love the conversation David had with the men standing around in absolute fear of the giant. For 40 days the giant had showed up to intimidate them, and for 40 days these men had cowered in fear of him.

Enter David upon the scene:

“What’s in it for the man who kills that Philistine and gets rid of this ugly blot on Israel’s honor? Who does he think he is, anyway, this uncircumcised Philistine, taunting the armies of God-Alive?”

David skipped fear and jumped right to I'm about to throw down on this dude.

Research suggests that a few thousand years before the research David was engaging in a really healthy activity. Because it turns out that when we imagine performing an action, the brain activates in ways that mimic the actual performance.

In other words, when David was imagining getting rid of that ugly blot on Israel's honor, his brain was activating as if he was actually doing it. David was training his brain to win his fight.

How many of us don't start there when we are facing a challenge? How many of us actually start with imagining all the reasons it can't happen instead of imagining it already has?

I know many people facing giants in their lives right now. And I know it might feel insignificant, but research says otherwise. There is power in imagining you're going to take that giant down. I know it may feel like you don't have near the weapons in your arsenal to win your battle, but imagining that you do may be the most powerful weapon one can own.

Helen Keller once said, "the only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision."

David walked upon the scene of a group of men scared to death of a giant who'd been mocking them and terrorizing them for weeks. David saw the giant. David saw the fear in the men's eyes. But what David imagined in his mind was more powerful than what he could see with his eyes.

David imagined taking down the giant.

David took down the giant.

Research suggests there is significance to that order of events.

Maybe you're walking into a world that has a giant waiting on you today. Don't leave the house until you spend some time imagining that you defeat that giant. Because as it turns out, giants are tough to defeat when we imagine they are unbeatable.

What's in it for the one who defeats that giant today?

I encourage you, go find out.