Inspiration & a whole lot of faith

I've been inspired!! Or have I simply had a revelation? Either way, it's a great thing because I have learnt something today. Inspiration cannot be created, we're either inspired or we're not. The freedom in my revelation today is that I no longer have to feel "uninspired" when I have little inspiration, if that makes any sense at all. I simply wait until I am inspired again and don't try to force anything.

Of course, there are those environments, people, places and songs that "inspire" me and I am aware of that and should as a result be placing myself within those environments and amongst those people but at the end of the day inspiration is something I don't have too much control over.

This is why I believe that inspiration and faith go hand in hand. By definition, "Faith is being sure of what we hope for and being certain of what we do not see" Hebrews 11:1 I have Faith because I recognise my lack of control on this planet we call home. Inspiration is naturally one of those things most people hope for and most definitely something we cannot see, and so, our hope for inspiration is dependent on God from where all inspiration flows. From natural beauty, to kind people, beautiful art to soulful music, it is from God that all these things originated and so it follows naturally, that when we are inspired, we give glory to God. Call it Worship if you will.

I'd like to take this one step further, in Ecclesiastes we understand that our purpose in this life is to bring glory to our Lord and Saviour and obey His commandments. If "being inspired" is brining glory to God, it follows that, that which inspires us is that which gives us purpose. If something inspires us, we should therefore pursue it with unwavering passion. We plead of the Lord incessantly to show us what our purpose in life is, we seek our purpose and we even go so far as to conjure up our purpose to feel the sense of "purpose" when the simple truth is, "wait to be inspired" and then, grab whatever it is that has inspired you with both hands and allow the inspiration to drive you to do things you never thought possible.

Part of my revelation today was brought on by a TED talk by author of "Eat, Pray, Love", Elizabeth Gilbert. I have not read the book, I have not watched the movie and I do not know what it is about and therefore offer no commentary on the movie (because I know that some Christ followers have a fairly opinionated view of the movie). I also, do not subscribe to a pluralistic society and categorically state that I believe the one and only living God is Jesus Christ. However, I do urge "creative minds" out there to watch her presentation on TED simply because I believe many of us have fallen into that trap of believing that our best is past and not that our best is still to come. We live in perpetual fear of not making as much of our lives as we have already made. Many of us live in constant pursuit of "our purpose", seeking that inspiration and I believe that Gilbert's simple philosophy, "For just having the sheer human love and stubbornness to keep showing up" is how many of us will eventually attain those dreams we dream and finding the purpose we have been searching for.

If you know your work is your work but have not yet recognized exactly why, motivated by love for those around you on a day to day basis and by sheer tenacity, continue doing what you're doing, keep "showing up", be open to new experiences and new people, travel to new places and never say no to the opportunity to serve and you will be inspired and you will "find" purpose.

Fame for resentment

We've all resented work we've done in the past... This subject of toil and labour is one that I have discussed in past blog entries. My interest, (bordering on passion) for why we work and our attitude towards our work has once again found expression through an interesting source.

I stumbled across this incredible site which has used 360 degree panoramic technology with high res photographs (not unlike gigipan technology) and at first I was just amazed at the site. The spectacle that lies before me on a computer screen is the Sistine Chapel and I am not for one moment claiming that this site in any way simulates the grandeur and pure ambiance that an observer in the Sistine Chapel would encounter, but having never witnessed it first hand, the site tweaked my interest.

Sistine Chapel


If ever someone has mentioned Sistine Chapel in the past, my poor performance in Std. 4 history does conjure up one image, and that is of a painter named Michelangelo lying on his back to paint narratives covering 1100 square meters of ceiling with the most intricate detail possible. What I didn't realise is that Michelangelo resented his commission, he believed his work only served the Pope's need for grandeur, (which in reality probably holds true, but that's a debate for another day). The point being, that something a man literally despised for it's motive, even while involved in conducting a passion, literally became his "crowning glory", one of the most defining accolades of who he is or should I say was, today.

It is not for us to question why we do what we do, so long as our passion is in it, so long as we acknowledge there is a purpose in it, perceived or not. Once again, I encourage everyone to work with all their hearts and remember that "it is good for a man to enjoy his toil under the sun". You never know what may become in the future, of what you think is trivial today.

Living out of a travel bag...

I have just returned from Tanzania. A trip that took me to some of the most beautiful places on the face of the planet. Mnembe Island just north of Zanzibar has iridescent turquoise water surrounding it, I could not attempt to describe it in my most profound english... in this case, seeing is believing. I don't even think my camera could represent the contrast between white sands and turquoise water. I walked the streets of Stone Town, slept in a Sultan's palace and watched sunset from a dhow. I gazed upon Mt. Kilamanjaro above the clouds as we flew into Arusha and met people whose soul purpose in life is to live in harmony with the land they occupy and the people they call their neighbours. What more could you ask of a job you may ask? It sounds wonderful, glorious, even perfect... but I have painted the picture that exists in most people's minds. The reality is not what is perceived however. The reality, although not wanting to distort the beautiful images I have experienced, is a little less "perfect". It's exhausting carrying heavy camera gear, moving a tripod inches to the left, to the right, slightly higher or lower from sunrise 'till 10pm to create these images. It's frustrating organising people and itinary's to get the "contrived" image we search for, it's heartwrenching to watch beautiful sunsets through black and white viewfinders and it's a blatant lie to say I've experienced a place when I've been there all of three hours before moving to the next location. My bag remains packed between brief laundry stops at "home" and every time I close the door behind me I struggle to take my heart, soul and mind with me.



Having said this, I must thank the Lord my God and provider for sustaining me through these trips AND... despite the difficulties and frustrations, for the rich experiences that He has afforded me, for the vast variety of subjects I have been exposed to and for the wonderful people I have met along the way, people who have taught me through their hospitality, humility and simplicity.

The key to living a content, fulfilled life is this... Accept and embrace your present circumstances, find the positive aspects in all that you do and paint yourself the best possible picture because for all the smiling faces, white beaches and turquoise oceans, packed bags and goodbyes are a necessary evil, there really is a price for everything, the grass is never greener on the other side.

What is work?

Work immediately conjures up feelings of labour, dread and strife but does it have to be this way? Is work purely a means to an end or can work hold more purpose in it's definition?

If we look at work from a biblical perspective, we see in Genesis that it is only by the sweat of our brow that we will eat of the cursed ground we live on which is a pretty clear picture that work is always going to require energy and a certain amount of hard slog. A few chapters on in the good book however, we read in Ecclesiastes that it is good and proper for man to eat and drink and to find satisfaction in his toilsome labour under the sun in the few days of life that God has given to him - because this is his lot. Moreover, when God enables a man to accept his lot and be happy in his work, this is a gift from God. It is then that he will seldom reflect on the days of his life, because God keeps him occupied with gladness of heart. So... although work is going to be toilsome and it is clearly our lot, i.e. a man must work to eat. It is possible to find satisfaction and happiness in our work and gladness of heart while performing it. Colossians tells us that whatever we do, we must do as if doing it for God and not for man. If we follow this precept, we can but only do the best job we know how to do... what more can a man do than his best?

As with everything, it boils down to our personal perception of what work is. If we accept work as our lot and as a part of our life, we will find something that has meaning to us. It is not simply a means to an end and it is not the financial reward that should motivate us at the end of the day. If we are passionate about what we do, we will find satisfaction in our work and it stands to reason that we will do the work well, and the more effective we are at our work, the more satisfaction we will find in our work. It stands to reason that work with a purpose beyond ourselves is work worth doing. There is however a new perception that we must all adopt. Our work not only has a purpose in itself, a purpose beyond ourselves, but our work has a purpose in our own lives. There will always be those days where our work is not as satisfactory as we would like it to be... if at all. In the words of Oswald Chambers, this purpose is called "Drudgery". "Drudgery is work that is far removed from anything we think of as ideal work. It is the utterly hard, menial, tiresome, and dirty work." When we experience drudgery, our true spirituality is instantly tested and we will know whether or not we are spiritually genuine. It is one of the finest tests to determine the genuiness of our character. When we face drudgery, how do we respond? What is our first innitiative against it? It is when we face drudgery that we must act as if there were no God at all. It is when we arise from the drudgery, that we find that God is right there with us, it is when we prove our character to be one that persists and perseveres despite the circumstances, it is when we act in obedience despite feeling alone and unfulfilled in our work that we suddenly recognise His presence in our work and the purpose we both serve and experience through our toil. "If we will arise and shine, drudgery will be divinely transformed."

The short of the long of it, is that God can transform any work... even the menial, hard, tiresome and dirty work into work that is satisfactory and fulfilling. How are you going to respond to drudgery next time your work is not absolutely ideal?

Check out http://www.rbc.org/utmost/index.php?month=02&day=19&year=07 for the article on drudgery. 19th Feb 2007.