Inspired

There is a lot of music I enjoy hearing. There are a few, however, that inspire me to write. There are a lot of people whose company I enjoy. There are but a few that inspire me to be a better person, to find my weaknesses and face them head-on until they are no longer who I am. The same goes with books, and movies, and art... there are always a few that inspire me to create, rather than just watch.

Those few that inspire... those are my favorites.

A while back I read something, somewhere, that said the word "inspired" came from an old root word meaning "breathed into". I think that makes sense, because being inspired, for me especially by music, feels like something inside takes a deep breath and comes to life.

It's mouth-to-mouth for the soul.

So it had been a while since I had heard music or read a book that truly inspired me. I hadn't written a song I really liked in a few months. I hadn't even been writing in my blogs much lately, for lack of things to say. I used to write in my blogs daily, sometimes twice daily.

It isn't that I have nothing to write, actually... it is just inspiration that keeps my mind focused. The inspired part of me is the one that says "look back over here, you spaz monkey!"

Lately there have been some pretty inspiring things in my life. I feel that part of me starting to come alive again. People I've met, stories I've heard, songs I've listened to, a special young lady... all have begun to inspire me. I feel that creative, focused part of me coming back.

I wonder if, when God "inspired" the Scriptures, He had already placed the words and ideas in the minds of the writers, and merely had to breathe life into what He had already created inside of them. I wonder, also, if God would ever use the words "spaz monkey."

Seriously, though... there is so much beauty in this world, in the people we see. There is just so much brokenness and dirt to distract us from the beauty inside. Maybe that is the "dim reflection" we see, and we need God's inspiration, His "breath", to awaken the part of us that will create beauty and truth.

Or maybe I'm just a spaz monkey who needs a special dose of the Spirit to keep my head on straight. Either way, I'm cool with it. I just wonder what inspiration really is, and why it is so stinkin' awesome.