The Other Resolution Part 2

The following is a copy of the Thomas Question email devotional. You can subscribe to the email edition from our website and tune into our podcast.

I want to take a risk by stating something emphatically. I think the single most important of all human resources is inspiration. Think about it. The burning inner energy to create some thing we’ve visualized is what precedes all great endeavors. Were it not for that initial picture of some “what if” coupled with a surge of desire, we never would have taken the first few steps.

You could make a strong case that this is the attribute which most links us to God’s image. After all, He is first and foremost The Creator. You could even take it a step further and say He is the embodiment of a loving, creative impulse.

With all these things in mind, I want to suggest that you are most like God when you are inspired. You are most like Him when you are capable of creating. What steps have you taken to create that kind of context in your life? Do you only ever get there infrequently or as a result of accidents you don’t understand? Or are you gradually collecting the principles and lessons which have helped you understand the “physics” of inspiration?

It’s a potentially arrogant thing to recommend your own messages, but I’d like to risk it. I stand behind last Sunday’s teaching because I think it’s something noticeably absent from our vocabulary of thought. We don’t take “rest” seriously, and too often, we don’t take them at all except as a last resort. That’s foolish. It’s like deciding you’ll only fill up your car once it’s already run out of gas and glided to a stop on the side of the road. That’s terribly inconvenient. And it often takes a long, empty, time-consuming walk to bring back a small bit of gas in a can. Not exactly a potent image of abundant living.

Perhaps one of the reasons our gospel has become a spray of chattering words is that our lives no longer burn with an obvious advantage – the heat of some other-worldly joy. I want to challenge you again as you take your first few tentative steps into a whole new year. Let’s give due consideration to the other kind of New Year’s resolution. What about a little “play” on purpose?

I’m renewing my resolve, all over again, to NOT make the choices that would have me dragging my sorry self through another year’s worth of a half-life.

This Sunday is the first in our new series for the new year focusing on the questions you’ve been asking and the question I’m going to start with is this: “Was a man named Jonah physically swallowed by a physical fish for 3 physical days?” Now before you say, “I’m just not into Jonah”, consider the rest of what this is about: the believability of God, the role of scripture and a place for miracle. It’s not to late to contribute your ideas (just hit reply).

Otherwise, I hope to see you there and I hope you bring someone with you.

CSW

BE HEARD
For the first 6 weeks of the new year, the teaching segment is completely at your disposal. Have you ever wanted something said to the people you live and work beside? Have you ever wanted to ask a question of your own? The whole series will be available for free on CD and DVD so it can travel around. Hit reply to submit a question.

LAST SUNDAY
Your life one year from now (see above)... Visit our website and tune into our podcast.

THIS SUNDAY
Jonah's whale, 6 days of creation and other improbable things.

THE RIGHT KIND OF CHURCH
It isn't one you go to - it is one you become. And it happens in the lobby. Church isn't a 75 minute ceremony, it's a chance to do life with people you care about. Do you go have a church?