Inspiration
24/06/12 03:39
Inspiration: for most people the word involves sensing the holy in their lives and experiences. People come to the church to be inspired. In a sense that I my job: to inspire folks. There is a problem with that expectation, however. It isn’t with the people in the church. People have a right to expect inspiration from their church. They have felt it so many times before. Perhaps it is a song that touches them deeply. Perhaps it is the right combination of words, spoken with love and care. Perhaps it is the powerful moment of prayer. Perhaps it is the experience of sacrament. There are many possibilities for inspiration in worship. We worship to offer ourselves to God and we have learned that God will not disappoint us. There will be inspiration in worship, if we allow the holy to enter our lives.
Here is where the problem with the expectation comes. I do not control the Holy Spirit. No one does. The bible teaches that the Holy Spirit blows where it chooses. There is nothing that I can do that will make inspiration to happen.
When I was in school, I thought that part of inspiration was academic preparation. If I were to read enough books, understand enough theology, gain enough knowledge of the bible . . . then I might be able to deliver an inspiring sermon that would touch people’s lives and help them to experience the power and awe of God’s work in our world. Whatever I used to think about academics and as much as I love school, I now know for certain that the Holy Spirit is not academic. It cannot be learned or taught or manipulated. It defies our efforts at control.
As I gained confidence in my preaching, I found that the art of preaching is more about allowing God’s spirit to flow through my words and my life than it is about finding exactly the right words. I know this about preaching from a manuscript. Sometimes the words come easily, as if I were simply being the scribe for thoughts that are bigger than me and ideas that flow through me. Sometimes, writing is a chore and each word seems to come at a high cost. When writing is that labored, I can count on the sermon being strained and difficult. This doesn’t mean that it won’t touch a life. I can’t count the number of times I have sat down convinced that my sermon was terrible and that I had wasted the time of my congregation to be greeted at the door with testimonies about how powerful and meaningful the sermon had been for someone in the congregation.
For a week-to-week job, however, it is difficult to admit that I have almost no control and very little ability to predict how the congregation will respond to my words. So I pray a lot. I study a lot. I read a lot of books. I talk to other preachers and I listen to good preaching whenever I have an opportunity.
And I sing the songs of our faith. When I am honest, I have to admit that perhaps I have experienced the inspiration of the Holy Spirit through music more often than I have through the spoken word. Maybe that is because I am a preacher. I’m working all the way through the sermon. When the choir sings an anthem or when we sing a hymn together, I can relax a bit. I can understand that I am not in control and I can allow the holy to enter into my life.
Then the song is finished and it is time for a prayer or a sermon and I feel once again that it is up to me to inspire the people who have invested so much time, energy, financial resources and love in the church that I serve. Furthermore, they pay my salary. I am a professional. I get paid to do this. I owe them inspiration.
But I do not cause inspiration. I do not control inspiration.
The best that I can offer is my own self as a conduit for God’s word. And part of allowing God’s Spirit to flow through my life is being attentive to my own spirit. So, from time to time, I need to be inspired. This weekend is a lot about inspiration for me. I am here at the United Church of Christ Musicians National Network Meeting because I was asked to present workshops for the musicians. I was grateful to accept the invitation because I feel so indebted to the musicians of our church. They need inspiration as well and if I can help make their event a success, it will be a good investment for the whole church. But I am also here because being inspired is an important part of what I need from the church.
Rev. Paul Hobson Sadler’s keynote this morning was inspirational. He was making a presentation, but he is by nature a preacher and his keynote was more sermon than anything else. Rev. Maren Tirabassi’s worsip and drama have also been truly inspirational. And this morning I am looking forward to a magnificent worship service with the choir of the musicians from around the country. We’ve also heard some wonderful piano music, a bit a jazz and much more to inspire us.
But I know that next week, when I return to our church there will be several people who will ask, “how did you enjoy your vacation?” And more than a few will wonder why the pastor takes so many weeks off each year. “If only I could find a job with that much vacation, they sometimes muse.” Of course there is no point in telling them that such a job comes with other perks, like working every weekend, being on call 24 hours a day, having to work on your days off and never being able to completely leave the job behind, even when you are on vacation. Add in wages that have to fit into a church’s budget and getting a bit of vacation from time to time seems to come at a relatively high cost. I don’t tell them these things because I don’t want to complain. I love my job. I love the people that God has given me to serve.
But unless I am attentive to seeking inspiration, I can’t be very inspiring to others. It is a challenge and a joy. This weekend is about inspiration. And music carries great power to inspire. Now, if my workshops can inspire a few musicians, perhaps they can continue to inspire their congregations in the weeks to come.
Here is where the problem with the expectation comes. I do not control the Holy Spirit. No one does. The bible teaches that the Holy Spirit blows where it chooses. There is nothing that I can do that will make inspiration to happen.
When I was in school, I thought that part of inspiration was academic preparation. If I were to read enough books, understand enough theology, gain enough knowledge of the bible . . . then I might be able to deliver an inspiring sermon that would touch people’s lives and help them to experience the power and awe of God’s work in our world. Whatever I used to think about academics and as much as I love school, I now know for certain that the Holy Spirit is not academic. It cannot be learned or taught or manipulated. It defies our efforts at control.
As I gained confidence in my preaching, I found that the art of preaching is more about allowing God’s spirit to flow through my words and my life than it is about finding exactly the right words. I know this about preaching from a manuscript. Sometimes the words come easily, as if I were simply being the scribe for thoughts that are bigger than me and ideas that flow through me. Sometimes, writing is a chore and each word seems to come at a high cost. When writing is that labored, I can count on the sermon being strained and difficult. This doesn’t mean that it won’t touch a life. I can’t count the number of times I have sat down convinced that my sermon was terrible and that I had wasted the time of my congregation to be greeted at the door with testimonies about how powerful and meaningful the sermon had been for someone in the congregation.
For a week-to-week job, however, it is difficult to admit that I have almost no control and very little ability to predict how the congregation will respond to my words. So I pray a lot. I study a lot. I read a lot of books. I talk to other preachers and I listen to good preaching whenever I have an opportunity.
And I sing the songs of our faith. When I am honest, I have to admit that perhaps I have experienced the inspiration of the Holy Spirit through music more often than I have through the spoken word. Maybe that is because I am a preacher. I’m working all the way through the sermon. When the choir sings an anthem or when we sing a hymn together, I can relax a bit. I can understand that I am not in control and I can allow the holy to enter into my life.
Then the song is finished and it is time for a prayer or a sermon and I feel once again that it is up to me to inspire the people who have invested so much time, energy, financial resources and love in the church that I serve. Furthermore, they pay my salary. I am a professional. I get paid to do this. I owe them inspiration.
But I do not cause inspiration. I do not control inspiration.
The best that I can offer is my own self as a conduit for God’s word. And part of allowing God’s Spirit to flow through my life is being attentive to my own spirit. So, from time to time, I need to be inspired. This weekend is a lot about inspiration for me. I am here at the United Church of Christ Musicians National Network Meeting because I was asked to present workshops for the musicians. I was grateful to accept the invitation because I feel so indebted to the musicians of our church. They need inspiration as well and if I can help make their event a success, it will be a good investment for the whole church. But I am also here because being inspired is an important part of what I need from the church.
Rev. Paul Hobson Sadler’s keynote this morning was inspirational. He was making a presentation, but he is by nature a preacher and his keynote was more sermon than anything else. Rev. Maren Tirabassi’s worsip and drama have also been truly inspirational. And this morning I am looking forward to a magnificent worship service with the choir of the musicians from around the country. We’ve also heard some wonderful piano music, a bit a jazz and much more to inspire us.
But I know that next week, when I return to our church there will be several people who will ask, “how did you enjoy your vacation?” And more than a few will wonder why the pastor takes so many weeks off each year. “If only I could find a job with that much vacation, they sometimes muse.” Of course there is no point in telling them that such a job comes with other perks, like working every weekend, being on call 24 hours a day, having to work on your days off and never being able to completely leave the job behind, even when you are on vacation. Add in wages that have to fit into a church’s budget and getting a bit of vacation from time to time seems to come at a relatively high cost. I don’t tell them these things because I don’t want to complain. I love my job. I love the people that God has given me to serve.
But unless I am attentive to seeking inspiration, I can’t be very inspiring to others. It is a challenge and a joy. This weekend is about inspiration. And music carries great power to inspire. Now, if my workshops can inspire a few musicians, perhaps they can continue to inspire their congregations in the weeks to come.