Passion

Passion - it's used to describe everything. Passionate Romance - Passionate Desire - Passionate Hunger - even in some states there are laws that give leniency in sentencing for murder that is committed in the heat of passion. Passion drives us. Passion moves us. It motivates us to take action. As the children of God, we ought to be striving to be the most bright, most hot, most passionate people on planet Earth for the cause of Christ. God would rather have 1 man, utterly abandoned to passion for Him than 1000 great speakers or great leaders who are not sold out to His cause. The men who left their mark on the word are those who expanded God's kingdom and God's influence through their passionate pursuit of excellence in the kingdom of God.

What are you passionate about? What are you hungry for? What is the thing that you have an intense desire for? What is the thing that drives your to sacrifice? Passion to me is the fuel that ignites the fire of meaningfulness in my life. It is the force that drives my soul. It is the reason that I exist - the reason that I live. Passion should drive your life . . . it should drive you every day. What drives you? What moves you? What is it that gives your life purpose?

Passion has always been the difference between good and great. Today many will join and watch Peyton Manning and Drew Brees lead their teams into the Super Bowl. The reason these two gentleman are successful quarterbacks is more than their athletic ability, rather it is their passionate pursuit of preparation and execution and excellence. Ferdinand Foch, commander of the Allied Forces in World War II made the following statement: "The most powerful weapon on planet Earth is the human soul when it catches on fire." Stronger than any bomb, stronger than any tank - give me one man or woman who's driven, who's soul has caught a burning passion - and I'll show you a force that can't be stopped. D.L. Moody when asked why people showed up in parks and in out of the way places to hear him preach, he simply said, "I set myself on fire and people show up to watch me burn." Bob Pierce, founder of World Vision which has fed hungry children around the world since 1950 said, "My heart will be broken for the things that break the heart of God." What is it that motivates you to act? What is it that will force you to move beyond your comfort zone and respond to what needs to be done with passion and desire?

When I study the life of Christ, I hear the words of Jesus saying things like: "I seek not my own but the will of Him that sent me." "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done." A complete loss of self, He must increase, I must decrease. Jesus was driven by such a passion to fulfill His purpose, an earthly kingdom couldn't dissuade Him. His disciples couldn't deter Him. Other's plans couldn't turn Him around. He was passionately pursuing His ONE purpose, to redeem mankind by dying for their sin. When the disciples heard Him pray, He prayed with such passion. His passion drove Him to touch lepers, to heal blinded eyes, to stop funerals, and to raise paralytics. His passion was always causing Him to love those who needed loving, healing those who were hurting and ultimately reconciling those who were separated from Him by sin.

I want to passionately pursue the things that God has put in my life to accomplish. God's purpose for me is bigger than I can dream for myself and so I must passionately pursue to accomplish His greatest dreams for me.

I'm sorry if this is long today - but one last thing I'd like to share with you. I have carried this in my Bible for nearly 15 years. It is a statement from a missionary who had lost his entire family in a foreign land for trying to impact that world for the cause of Christ. It is simply called "My Commitment as a Christian." It states:

"I'm a part of the fellowship of the unashamed. I have Holy Spirit Power. The dye has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I'm a disciple of His. I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away or be still.

My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, my future is secure. I'm finished with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundane talking, cheap living and dwarfed goals.

I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don't have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded or rewarded. I now live by faith, lean on His presence, walk by patience, lift by prayer, labor by power.

My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is heaven, my road is narrow, my way rough, my companions few, but my Guide reliable, my mission clear. I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, deluded or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of the adversary, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.

I won't give up, shut up, let up, until I have stayed up, prayed up, paid up, preached up for the cause of Christ. I am a disciple of Jesus. I must go till He comes, give till I drop, preach till all know and work till He stops me. And when He comes for His own, He will have no problem recognizing me -- My banner will be clear!"

What is the source of your passion? Find it, get in the middle of it, and use it to drive you to accomplish great things for God. It's time to make an impact for His kingdom - let's pursue the things of God with reckless abandon and burning passion. Until next time - God Bless - love you all! -- RP