The Wishful Thinking of a Wonderful Life

It's one of the most popular religions out there, but it doesn’t have buildings, clergy, holy scriptures or an organizational structure. It’s so informal its followers aren’t even aware they are members. But it is the source of inspiration for blockbuster movies and pop song hits.

One of these movies has morphed into a Christmas classic, and features a kindly but often befuddled elderly angel named Clarence whose mission is to “earn his wings” by serving an earthling named George Bailey who seems to have lost his way.

So what is the name of the religion that inspired the classic movie “It’s a Wonderful Life”? It’s called “Wishful Thinking”, and people become its followers when they decide they can create spiritual reality by simply wishing it into existence.

I’m being facetious, but I do believe that for many people, such as a young couple I met at the park – Ishmael and Adelina – wishful thinking leads them to believe in theories about spirituality that include ideas like reincarnation, ghosts, and guardian angels as part of God’s care and love for his people. For Adelina, belief in a guardian angel or possibly visitations by deceased relatives came from dreams or visions she had during her treatment and struggle as a cancer survivor.

As a Christian, I see these sorts of things skeptically because I don’t see them supported by scripture, and because they can be a distraction or diversion from the glory that only God deserves. But that’s not to say they aren’t real. In fact, 2 Cor. 4:18 tells us that the spiritual realm is even more real than the physical: “As we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”

The “things that are seen” – the physical realm, are less “real” in the sense that they are temporary and have a very limited lifespan while the “things that are unseen” – the spiritual realm are more real because they are eternal. Maybe God was reminding Adelina imeof this reality, and giving her time to respond.

So, whether a distraction from the Gospel by the enemy of our souls or a friendly reminder of our eternal destiny, God can use Adelina’s spiritual experience to alert her to the reality of the spiritual realm. I just pray she will move past the “wishful thinking” stage and begin to relate to God’s revelation of Himself in the pages of Scripture and through the words of faithful Christians who teach it.