What Am I Passionate About?
NETWORK 2 : Psalm 37
I
want to begin tonight by sharing my testimony. For much of our married life I
was blissfully unaware of dark secrets in our home. On two occasions the Bishop
visited us at home to find me hoovering the carpet. In those days
I would show it off when
ever visitors came to the house. I would explain the power of its dual action
cyclone. How the air inside reaches a speed of 924 miles and hour creating powerful
G forces that spin out the dust into a solid mass. Whereas a traditional vacuum
even with a new bag loses 50% of its suction after one room, a Dyson maintains
100% suction 100% of the time. Charles Dyson perfected his revolutionary machine
after producing over 5000 prototypes. Here it is. So impressed with the power
of a Dyson, we bought a newer more powerful machine late last year and donated
our first Dyson to the Church. I am looking forward to the newest Dyson which
is an robotic version guided by remote sensors around the room.
How many of you have a Dyson? I don’t own any shares in the company but
I will gladly give a demonstration to any of you who are skeptical. I cannot imagine
why anyone would not want to own a Dyson…
These
Sundays through to Easter we are considering finding our place in the Body of
Christ through the Network Course. Last week we considered an overview of the
series. Today we come to the question of passion. What are you passionate about?
I am passionate about
several things, including my Dyson… Or put another way, What do you care about most? Where
would you like to see your life make a difference? Sometimes we think of our passion in terms of a burden we carry, a call we've received, a dream
we have, or a vision we've glimpsed.
Whatever you call it, passion is
the God-given desire of the heart to
make a difference somewhere. If we all cared about the same things,
many of the needs in our world would go unmet. In today’s papers there is an article
about the changing magnetic north pole. God has put a divine magnet within each
of us that is intended to attract us to the people, functions, or causes where
he intends us to minister. We don’t all have the same magnet.
This is
not an afterthought on God's part. Our passion is built in to us so that we will
conform ourselves to his purpose for our lives. This is none clearer than in our
reading from Psalm 37:3-6.
”Delight yourself in the Lord and he will
give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him
and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the
justice of your cause like the noonday sun.”
So
there is a relationship between our trusting and delighting in God and the fulfillment
of our heart's desire. In order for this relationship to blossom, however, we
must understand the purpose the Lord designed for us-a major piece of which is
found within our own heart's desire. Yours is
A
heart he uniquely created
A heart with
which he intended to lead you
A heart
meant to draw you to the focus of your ministry
A
heart overflowing with emotional energy-your passion
Think about it –
Alexander Fleming is remembered for… penicillin. Thomas Edison is remembered for…
the light bulb. Henry Ford is remembered for the… car.
For what will you
be remembered? Granted, most of us will never be as well known as these people,
but fame or huge accomplishment isn't our issue. I'm asking you to consider the
matter of personal significance. What do you find most meaningful? Would it be
"the family," like James Dobson? Or reaching lost people, like Billy
Graham? Or perhaps being merciful, like Mother Teresa? Although your passion may
not seem especially significant to someone else, it does to God and when channeled
in his service it can be powerful.
Let me illustrate this.
Pete and Frank are sideman. Frank gets to the church by
Then there's Pete. It
is
Making a Passionate Difference
The difference we're talking about is passion.
Do you know what your passion is? If you do
not, you are more than likely fulfilling the passions of others. And that is never as satisfying as investing your own God-given passion. Do those around you express concerns that they find
worthy of their time, energy, and resources?
Do they communicate these things in such a way that it seems as if something must be wrong with you because you do not feel the same way? The
way to respond to other people's concerns
is to applaud their passion and pursue
your own. Now we're at the crucial point.
What is your passion?
If it were entirely down to you, how would
you like to invest your time, energy, and resources so that at the end of your life you will have a deep sense of fulfillment?
How will your life make a contribution to the cause of Christ in the lives
of those around you?
Perhaps, at
the moment, you're not sure. But as you delight yourself in the Lord, you
will find the insight you're seeking within the desires of your heart. Identifying your God-given passion is not an exact science; it is more of a process. Let's first define passion and
consider several categories. Then, we
will look at seven different ways you
might come to realize and identify your passion.
Finally, we will explore some reasons
why your passion may be hard to identify. Isn't it time you got in touch with this important aspect of yourself
Definition
and Categories of Passion
We have identified passion as the God-given desire
that compels us to make a difference
in a particular area of ministry or life
where God is glorified and people are edified. The various passions we find among different people don't have anything
to do with who is right or wrong. Passion is not about being good or bad. If our passion is God-given, it is an issue of obedience.
Will you be faithful to the passion God has placed
in your heart? There is a danger in putting things into categories, because categories often narrow the possibilities. There
is a risk in defining your passion
because words are more limiting than are nonverbal expressions. Our hope with the following categories is that the desires of your heart can be identified so you'll
better understand your-passion for
service.
Passions
About People
Passions
about people include people groups like children, youth, or senior citizens. People
groups can involve those who are grieving, newly married, or blind. You might have a passion for the mothers of preschoolers, for
immigrants, or for the unemployed. If you have a people-passion, you long to be identified as one who makes a difference in certain people's lives.
Passions
About Roles or Functions
Passions
about roles or functions might include things like discipling, being an entrepreneur, or consulting.
If you're one of these people, you'll find it most fulfilling to serve in a particular role. It could be in terms of
a passion to learn, solve problems, or develop systems.
Passions
for a Cause
People
who are cause-driven believe that their cause
is the significant
issue in life that needs to be addressed if God is to be truly glorified and the cause of
Christ advanced. Some
have a passion for addressing the problems of world hunger, fighting for human rights,
the environment, financial stewardship, or reaching the spiritually lost. If you have
a cause passion, you will enthusiastically attempt to make
others aware of the
issue and attract as many as you can to become supporters. With cause-oriented passion, you
may continuously feel a level of frustration with the fact that more people are not as passionately
committed to the cause as you are.
They may be sympathetic, occasionally involved, and even give financially, but the bottom
line is that they just
do not care about it as much as you do. Again, we can't all do everything. Ask yourself:
Am I doing anything about my heart's desire? Am I fulfiling my passion and finding fulfilment?
Passion
Indicators
There
are seven passion indicators that may be helpful in the identification of your
passion.
1.
Imagine that you and I are meeting for the first time. In the course of our conversation, we talk about a variety
of topics. Then we
turn to a new subject. As you are talking to me about it, you start speaking a little faster.
You lean forward. You become increasingly animated. Your voice goes up a little. Your passion
may be indicated
by more active body language. You are talking about a subject that could keep you up late at night. It's the topic
that would cause you to jump out of bed in the morning. What are we talking about?
2. Sometimes our
dreaming or reflection allows us to imaginatively explore the desire of our heart. In these times,
we may visualize
or find ourselves being drawn as if by a current toward something that heightens our feelings
and enlarges our capacity for action. The image that we see will hit an emotional chord.
When you are alone,
do you ever wonder, "What if ...?" Does your response to that question create emotional energy? What
is it?
3.
Make a list of your greatest achievements, but be sure that they are things you enjoyed doing. These achievements
may be accomplishments
that others do not find particularly impressive, but are were important to
you. (Conversely, you may have achieved Student of the Year, but to you it was not that
big of a deal, or
you did not enjoy the process of earning it.) Perhaps when you were twelve, you and a friend decided to put on a neighborhood carnival.
You organized the booths, got people to
run them, had prizes, made and sold tickets, and actually made a little profit. You pulled it off and had a great time doing it. It was an enjoyable achievement. Are there
similarities in your list of enjoyable achievements? What themes can you see?
4. What kinds of things are you
doing? What topics are you involved
in, in which you lose track of time? When you are moving in the direction of your passion, time can easily slip away. Our passion can make us less aware of what is going on
around us because we become so focused
on what we care about most. What might that be?
5. People
who are fulfilling their passion are making a purposeful difference. (However,
even though you are making a difference,
it doesn't necessarily mean you are serving in the area of your passion.) Those who are expressing their heart's desire will find greater energy and focus as they positively
impact those around them.
Of
course, the process of fulfilling your passion will not always
be easy or fun. But in the midst of moving toward your passion, there is an inner confidence that you are doing what God wants you to do in the way he wants you to do it.
There is an assurance that you are where
he wants you, and that he is using you according to his divine purposes. Whether subtlety
or overtly, you are making a difference.
Where is that happening? In what area
would you like to see it happen?
6.
Your passion will energize you. Not only will you become more
alive emotionally, but the activity or thoughts about your passion will actually give you energy. This is God's
way of moving you toward those people,
roles, or causes that are his created agenda for your life. His will for you is partly revealed in your God-given passion. What energizes you?
7.
Whatever your passion is, it needs to be submitted to a twofold
test: Does it glorify God? Does it edify others? If your passion and its expression do not meet this test, you
have not identified your God-given
passion.
You
may have expressed a desire of your
heart, but it is not from God. He cannot violate his own integrity and purposes. That is
why we are shown the condition on which God will give us the desires of our heart, "Trust
in the Lord and do
good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Delight yourself in the Lord and
he will give you the desires of your heart" (Psalm 37:3-4).
Jesus
was communicating the same principle in the New Testament when he said, "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done for you"
(John 15:7 NASB). Many people ask God for things, but they are not abiding
in Jesus. When we abide, we can confidently ask, knowing that he will be pleased to respond to our requests
because they will reflect his purposes. His heart's desire for us becomes our
heart's desire.
Does your passion glorify
God and edify others?
When you are abiding
and delighting yourself in him, what desires do you have? Reviewing your responses from
above, how might you summarize your passion in a word or phrase? I have a passion for (to)………
The
‘Where’ Question
As you
identify and pursue your God-given passion, you will become more aware of the answer
to the question we have been asking, "Where should I serve?" Naming your passion answers the where question.
If
you have a passion for children, where should you be serving? In
a ministry that is committed to impacting the lives of children.
If
your passion is for discipleship, where should you be serving? In a ministry committed to discipling people.
If your passion is for world
hunger, where should you be serving? In a ministry or organization committed to feeding the poor.
My
passion is __________ so where should I be serving? In a ministry committed to________________
Don't worry
at this time how you can fulfill your passion. Don't
let the fact that your church may not have such a ministry keep you from identifying your passion. For now, we just want you
to name it. God has indicated where he wants
you to serve-it has been written on your
heart. But knowing where to serve is different from knowing what to do.
Your passion may reveal the direction or focus of your ministry, but how do you know what
to do within that area of ministry? Fortunately,
God has spoken to us about that too and that is our subject next week. Lets
pray.
Lord, Thank you for placing your desires in my heart. Sometimes I have trouble focusing on the things
that matter most to me. Sometimes I'm confused by the people around me, and I mistake
their passion for mine. Sometimes I
long to fulfill my passion, but I don't
know where you want me to do it. Please
be close to me now. Help me to stop
and be quiet. Help me to listen to my own heart. Help me to listen to your still small voice, and to obey. In Jesus' name, Amen.
This
sermon draws heavily on Bruce Bugbee’s “What you do
best in the Body of Christ” published by Zondervan, and the NETWORK Leaders Guide
by Bugbee, Cousins and Hybels also published by Zondervan.