Inspiration

Inspiration- I have spent more than forty years of my life endeavoring to glorify God and bring inspiration to the people around me. My road has taken me to some pretty depressed places and many awesome places. I spent time on skid row in Chicago and came face to face with men and women who experienced the demonic side of drugs and alcohol. I lived in Benton Harbor where men lived in burnt out and abandoned buildings. In temperatures below zero my wife and I walked through the shells of buildings looking for the shells of men.


How can I bring inspiration to people whose soul is filled with pain, emptiness and apathy? How can any person bring inspiration to men and women who care more about the bottle and fix? The answer is quite easy. I can't and you can't.


Inspiration- How do I bring inspiration when I just don't feel very inspired myself? This is a very legitimate question that deserves an answer. I will say a few things at the end of this post. I haven't posted on this blog for a very long time. The reason; I haven't had anything to say.


Now, for a person who wants to be a writer, that is a pretty lame excuse. I read blogs and stories about writers and the good ones all say the same thing, write anyway. Now, I may not be the sharpest tool in the shed, but, I am not thicker than two planks. I get it. The word is discipline. I need to learn to be a disciplined writer. God is helping me to understand that if my writing is to bring inspiration to others than He will empower me.


Inspiration- The word finds its truest voice in scripture. Genesis tells us that God breathed into Adam and he became a living soul. Inspiration finds its truest source in the breath of God. God's breath gave life to Adam. His breath gave life to holy scripture, the Bible. The author of Timothy tells us that, "All scripture is inspired by God."


On my own I can no more bring inspiration to the souls of men and women than I can direct the clouds and rain. But, in union with God through His Son, Jesus Christ, I have experienced and continue to experience the breath of God. Each day I can be in communion with the life giving breath of God. If I am to be effective in bringing inspiration I must be connected to the source of inspiration.


Some review of the inner man, my own, is helpful in understanding what can happen. I have been pretty stressed these last couple of months. I have had a book released. I am searching for an agent to represent me in the book world. I am working on the sequel to my first novel. I am trying to encourage an older struggling congregation to find their path of ministry.


In other words, I was giving too much and not taking care of my own soul. That is disaster in the making, a coming tornado that will throw everything into the whirlwind of confusion and near blindness.


Just prior to starring at this monitor I closed my eyes for a few minutes and  the prayer of my heart was quite simple, 'Lord help me do what you want me to do."


Take care of your soul. Find and practice the avenues that bring you to the streams of peace, regeneration and inspiration. If you do not take care of your own soul you will be unable to bring inspiration to another.


Tedd Galloway is the author of, A Mother's Heart Moved the Hand of God. The book was released in May through Morgan James Publishing. It is available at most online sites as well as major bookstores. His website is www.teddgalloway.com  At the site you can watch the YouTube video produced to highlight the book and the story of colorblind love.