Inspiration Psalm 13:1-6 05-16-10

Inspiration 5-16-2010 psalm 13:1-6

1 How long, O LORD ? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? 2 How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me? 3 Look on me and answer, O LORD my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death; 4 my enemy will say, "I have overcome him," and my foes will rejoice when I fall. 5 But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. 6 I will sing to the LORD, for he has been good to me.

The sermon series that isn’t, random May
The story of this sermon- the middle child of 5

My wife used to ask, what is the sermon about?
“the dry soul searches for God”
Oh, no. please no more sermons on the dry soul searching for God

We live in tension between 2 places
The psalmist describes it: I am alone, I wrestle, I have sorrow.
Answer me God. Give light to my eyes.
I trust in your love – my heart rejoices in your salvation
I will sing again

We live in the tension between
Isolation or inspiration
Isolation we know, it = loneliness.
Inspiration is that place where I feel touched by God

We live in the tension between the two, but
Silly us, we think that we ought to be inspired all of the time.
It just isn’t going to happen.

Today I want to talk about - What inspires me?
What restores the joy?

The aha exp inspires me. Watching the lights go on in the life of another
I wish I could share the emails that we receive

Sometimes it happens for me, a visitation that appears unexpectedly sometimes it doesn’t

I think it is a problem when we just get into a rut in life and stop hoping
You are never to old,
Never too spiritual
When the lights stop going on, its time to submit our hearts to the lord

What other people do inspires me [need a story]
Acts of kindness

I am inspired by the way that others give themselves away
People teach me that Its better to give than to receive

To care for the needy, the hurting
To speak to someone in need
To get past selfish thoughts
To live a life of sacrifice, generous acts Loving acts.
Such things take me into the world of God’s amazing joy.

Creation inspires me
Iris
Church cherry trees

Creation inspired the psalmist
Ps 19:1
The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
The night sky, the Hubble telescope

The scriptures inspire me
2 Timothy 3:16
All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:

Every now and then I get stuck on one.
God so loved the world.
Take up and read. Write down the one that blesses you.
Put it in your pocket. Hang it on your mirror.
Who likes this one?

Friendship inspires me
The bonds of love

Friendship
Souls knit together in love

KJV 1 SAM 18 1
1And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking unto Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.

Friends provide-Positive encouragement- you are safe
They help you be your best
They laugh, they cry, they laugh,
They help you get over yourself.

Another human being that loves you.
And that love is from God so your friends take you into the abode of God.

Hope inspires me
The belief that things can be better.
We get it from God=
Rom 5:5 5And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

We get it from others
It is the “all is well of life”. “The everything is going to be ok”.
I may be down, but when I encounter someone that reminds me of hope, I am lifted past the circumstances of life and returned to the joy of living.

Where did the biblical characters find inspiration?
The psalmist found it in creation
Elijah found it in the still small voice
Jesus found it in prayer
David, Paul, peter found it in response to a crushing painful experience
A crushing experience brought them to their knees

Now think about that. The darkest hour, is just before the dawn
In the darkest hours, its like our antenna are up. We are listening and we can hear God speak.

For the psalmist, nothing changes, yet he rejoices!
he has turned the corner

What robs me of inspiration? Inspiration robbers
Busy, worry, being human - its just part of the deal.

Inspiration is not something you get from people
it only comes from being close to god

But you said you were inspired by my friends.
Yes, because they take you into the abode of God.
Into holy community. Not self righteous community,
but into that world where you know god is real because you see his work in the touch of that friend.

Wholeness does not come from buying a boat or a set of clothes.
It only comes from God

Finding inspiration at the end of yourself

Only god fills the hole in your life.
You chase everything else hoping to find relief,
but we are made complete in one place in our hearts by one name
Call upon him

Only Jesus can end the isolation and turn your loneliness to joy

Conclusion
Are you seeking inspiration –God’s loving presence
looking for something that truly fulfills

Leave what robs you
Go toward that which blesses you
Friends, creation, scriptures, hope
Call upon the name of the Lord.
he can restore the joy of your salvation.