Strategic Monk
Uninspired and Waiting for Inspiration
Some days are like a balloon which is losing its air.
We feel tired or discouraged, frustrated or sad, or simply uninspired. It is too much effort to take our next step forward.
Why would we continue? What is the point? Is there a reason for us to get out of bed in the morning, or to write another word?
We feel like we are dragging ourselves along. It is too much work to open our eyes to see things differently.
Our commitment to making new beginnings has worn off. Here we are, stuck in the winter of January. All our resolve to change the ways we live our lives has disappeared.
We sit here in the cold and dark, uninspired and waiting for inspiration.
What precisely are we waiting to happen? Most of us enjoy feeling inspired. What do we need to do to find the inspiration we have lost? Who is responsible for us feeling uninspired? Is it something we do to ourselves, something we can control? How can we change it and prevent it from happening again?
Where does our lack of inspiration come from when we are uninspired? Is it something we eat or something we should be eating? Do we lose our inspiration when we follow particular practices, or when we stop following them? Are there special incantations we can recite or ceremonies we need to experience?
What can we do when we are uninspired, other than wait for inspiration to strike again?
Why is inspiration so important to us? What is it about being uninspired which deflates us?
How can we know what inspires us or causes us to feel uninspired? What steps can we take to feel inspired?
Why Do We Start to Feel Uninspired?
I am not a particularly deep thinker.
For a long time I lived asleep to myself, blanketed in layers of expectations and distractions. When I was finally open to listening, I started learning about contemplation.
Contemplation is not about sitting still, thinking deep thoughts. For me, contemplation is a way to let go of all the thoughts, whether they are deep or not, which distract us from spiritual life’s presence and action.
We do not practice contemplation to become more holy or to earn a merit badge for depth. Contemplation is a way to practice letting go. As we learn to let go, distractions become less overwhelming. We are reminded of the deep sacredness within us and in the world around us.
We close our eyes and breathe deeply to enter the stillness. Letting go of thoughts and ideas, memories and feelings, we sit calmly.
Our contemplative practices are not methods of making ourselves feel more inspired. They are not antidotes for when we feel uninspired.
Slowly, we grow used to sitting in the dark listening to stillness. Without moving, without thinking, without effort, the truth in the darkness reveals itself to us.
Contemplation is not only about the time we spend sitting with our eyes closed listening to sacred stillness. The fruit of contemplation becomes ripe as we walk around, gain deeper insight, and our reflection into practice.
We begin to recognize the deep truth in the world, and in ourselves. Being inspired or uninspired is not about anything which affects us from outside us.
Inspiration flows within us and from us to the people around us.
We begin to feel uninspired when we lose touch with spiritual life within us. It is tempting to sit and wait for someone else to inspire us.
How Do We Avoid Feeling Uninspired?
Some of the monks I know have helped me appreciate inspiration in new ways.
It is easy for us to see or hear, feel or taste something which fills us with a sense of awe. The words we read or the music in our ears, the trees or mountains or ocean beaches we see. Sometimes it is another person who sparks this sense in us.
We mistake the external, sensory stimulation for the source of our inspiration.
There are times when we have not experienced a sense of awe for too long. We have been focused on work or on achieving results. The details of our everyday lives have distracted us and kept us from sensing awe.
It can be a challenge for us to realize, no matter what sparks us, spiritual life is the source of the awe we experience.
When we take time for physical and emotional rest, time to pay attention to each moment, we remember our awe.
Some of us need to build time for inspiration into our schedules.
We need to give ourselves opportunities to experience inspiration each day.
How can we practice inspiring contemplation in our everyday lives?
Helping When Other People Feel Uninspired
When people come to me feeling uninspired they are not usually looking for a cheerleader or a motivational speaker. The people who come to me are most often looking for someone who can listen and ask insightful questions.
They are not looking for someone to cheer them up and get them going. It is more helpful for them to find a person they can trust to tell them the truth.
Inspiration is not about making someone feel better or feel good about themselves. Being inspired often begins where people are uninspired.
When we feel uninspired we want to talk with someone who can give us an honest, clear picture. There are times when we need to get some rest and other times when we need to try a new approach.
The people who will help us when we feel uninspired take time to listen and hear our stories. Each of us has our own unique inspiration.
Being uninspired and waiting for inspiration is about appreciating the truth of our situation.
Where will we find inspiration within ourselves when we feel uninspired today?
How can we help when other people feel uninspired this week?
[Image by Qfamily]
Greg Richardson is a spiritual life mentor and coach in Southern California. He has served as an assistant district attorney, an associate university professor, and is a lay Oblate with New Camaldoli Hermitage near Big Sur, California. Greg’s website is StrategicMonk.com and his email address is [email protected].
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