The Bible is full of stories and accounts of inspiration as God motivates the hearts, minds, intellect, and hands of men to carry out His will. If you read "The Year That Could Have Been" then you know that desperation is the result of despair and hopelessness. And what about Inspiration? And how can we make 2011 Year That Could Be . . . inspired and spiritually unlike any other we've had prior?
I'm no expert on motivation, nor do I see myself as any type of life-coach, but here are a few things that came from my experience last year.
Inspiration has a few vague definitions but a couple I found most relevant are these: "a special influence of divinity on the minds of human beings" and the "arousal of the mind to special unusual activity or creativity."
For Christ Followers, that inspiration comes from aligning our life's work as He has purposed and gifted us. And there are a few things we need to consider, discover, and pursue to bring that all together in order to live a full, meaningful, and inspired life.
Know Yourself
What I found in my tough start to last year was that my problems and challenges were created by me pursuing what I wanted; from me following my plan as I had designed and purposed. When things didn't go as I had planned desperation and despair followed. The other was that I was trying to do too much and could never say "no". We all have our limits and there are truly things most of us can do well and other things only a few of us can do at all.
God has given each of us specific talents and abilities. Within each of us is a super-naturally occurring gift, or gifts, that He has placed within our very beings. It's your essence. It's what you are, and are destined to be if you'll only harness it and use it towards His will.
Last year I made a list of my top 3 abilities and after talking with a friend narrowed it down to two: Music and Writing. I'm certainly capable of tackling more than that, but those we determined were my unique purposeful talents.
This week I encourage you to do the same. Talk to your friends at Church, your small group family, your pastors, and teachers. Let those who know you help you determine a couple things you do best and the gifts that make you unquestionably you. Find those unique God given talents that you can use to meet the needs of your church and those around you. Be patient and pray . . . ask for guidance.
Know The Trinity
It's not often I use the word "Trinity" and that maybe a pitfall. Each entity of the Trinity has a unique position and purpose as well. Having a clear and concise understanding of how we relate to God's self-design will help us in finding our inspiration.
God, The Father. A friend shared this just yesterday "In his hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind." (Job 12:10). God simply "Is" and the depths of His being, riches, knowledge, grace, purpose, and ways are unfathomable to us. God is incredibly ginormous (gigantically-enormous) beyond imagination and He calls the Earth His "footstool" in Isaiah 66. But we can know Him through His word and by living by His precepts such as "be still and know that I am God" (Psalms 46:10) that require us to push our selfish desires aside and let Him direct our lives. It means we should seek His purpose through His word and in the use of our talents and gifts.
"Draw near to God and He will draw near to you." James 4:8
Jesus Christ, our redeemer, and our example. Often called Rabbi, or teacher, Christ not only came to redeem us from our sins, but to show us The Way. His very words, actions, and heart are revealed to us throughout the New Testament. It is through those scriptures that we can trace His footsteps and follow His example. And it is in our personal journeys through the scriptures that we come to know Christ. Christ gives definition to our design and purpose . . . He guides us home . . . and it is He that fulfills the works of our hearts.
"No one comes to the Father except through me"~ Jesus, John 14:6
The Holy Spirit. Nothing seems to drive Christians crazier than trying to put a finger on the Holy Spirit. Genesis 1:2 refers to him as "The Spirit of God" and he is just that; a portion of God's Spirit sent to dwell within us. It is his resident voice that God uses to speak to us, to guide us, to protect us, and nurture our spiritual growth.
"And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you." ~ Jesus, John 14:16-17
The Year That Could Be Starts Today
What the Trinity shares in common is that we can only come to know them through their revelation in the scriptures. It is our personal responsibility to search out the knowledge that will bring us closer to Him, or them, and align our very souls with His design for our lives.
The only resource for acquiring that knowledge is from His word, the Bible. And this year I plan to read through it myself and I'm asking you to join me. There are a multitude of plans to follow to do this and BibleGateway-Reading Plans is one online that allows you to pick a plan and a favored version of the Bible. It's the best 10 minutes a day you can invest in your faith and knowledge. Do it!
It's when we are able to align our gifts, talents, and abilities with His purpose for our hearts, hands, and minds that we will enjoy the depths of fulfillment and inspiration.
This is the year that could be . . . spend some time with Him and ask Him to help you make it the very best.
Happy New Year. Be well.
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