Passion

Recently I spent a few days in Gettysburg with some of the other interns. While I was there I could not help but feel the passion that was evident in the people that fought and died there. On both sides of the war, they had this all encompassing passion that pushed them on through the tough times and the moments of hardship and despair. In the museum there are many letters from the lines, both to their loved ones and from their loved ones. These letters convey their earnest to do what is right and their unbridled desire to see it done. This passion that they had is something that has clearly been lost on this generation. Their lives were ruled by it and everything that they did displayed it for all to see. So what happened? Why after over a hundred years has this reckless passion disappeared? Why are we now ruled by an apathy that is as contagious as the passion that was once held by our forefathers and those in the civil war?

I think that one of the reasons is that we're afraid of passion. It is frightening and it makes people do crazy things. When you are passionate about something your mind tends to focus on just that and people think you're obsessed or even worse. Once you've tasted passion and seen its effects in your life you can't help but be passionate about everything else. God's stance on passion is pretty obvious as well. On several occasions Jesus says to leave everything and follow Him. He wants your entire focus to be on Him, not to be distracted by the worries of your day or the things that you have or even desire. He says at one point that you are neither Hot nor Cold so I will spit you out of my mouth. He doesn't want a lukewarm affection, He wants an unbridled, reckless love.

It is very easy to go through life without experiencing passion for something. It is passion however that can alter the entire shape of the world. I went to an event put on by World Vision and while I was there I read about a four year old girl who started a non-profit organization that sends thousands of toys to children in Africa. A four year old with a passion for serving others was able to change the world. Another story is that of the person who at the age of 16 started a movement entitled Loose change to loosen chains. He is now collecting money around the world to help free those still under slavery. His passion has altered the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. Can you imagine what this world would be like if each of us was passionate about serving God?

I know that in my life I have been in both places. I can tell from experience that being passionate is not easy. You tend to get burned by it, sometimes its hard and makes life even more difficult. There are times where you just want a break from it as it can be mentally, physically and emotionally draining. I can tell you also from experience that there is no other way to live life fully than to live passionately for Christ. So don't be afraid to be burned, or get hurt; don't be afraid to be thought crazy or a fool; don't back away when things get tough; stand up and passionately live your life for Christ.

Uncompromising Trust

Today I was reading from Ruthless Trust and I came across a story about a monk that really made me stop and think. The monk was in prayer for many years asking God to bring him a spiritual mentor that could help him to become more like Christ. One day he had an internal feeling to go to the steps of the cathedral. There he met a beggar. He said to the beggar I hope that you have a good day and a happy life. The beggar responded that of course he would, but that he really didn't understand the monk. You see the beggar looked at every day as a gift from God, that every day was a blessing in and of itself. God created every day and it didn't matter what happened on any given day as it was still another day to praise God. On top of that our lives are in God's hands, when we surrender to a perfect trust in God we realize that every circumstance in our lives is for His glory. Everything is meant for Him, whether we see the purpose behind it or not. When we focus on how a circumstance affects us then we've missed the point completely. It is meant to be a blessing and a way for us to bring Him glory.

It kind of goes along with my devotion for today from At His Feet by Chris Tiegreen. In it Tiegreen is discussing Luke 17:7-10. Jesus is talking to the disciples about how a servant doesn't stop and take a break just because he has completed a task, he does all that the master requires of him. When the servant starts thinking about what he is going to gain from something or when his focus falls off of his master and onto himself, then the servant is doing everything for the wrong motives and is no longer serving the way he should. We often look at our tasks as something that we can do to sort of pay back God in a way, but that is not it at all. We are called to be obedient, we are called to trust in God's plan. The things that we do for God should not be looked at as some sort of task that makes us better Christians, but as a gift from God that allows us to bring glory to Him. When we are doing a task we should not think of it as something that will give us a reward, but when doing the task we should be thankful for simply having the opportunity to be doing that task.


It is a humbling thought though to realize that none of this is really about us. I mean yes God blesses us and takes pleasure in doing so, but when we get so focused on God blessing us, we miss out on everything else that He gives us. Just like this beggar who trusted that everything in his life was a gift from God and went through life trusting that God's perfect plan includes both the tough times and the good. The biggest thing we can learn from this is to remember that our focus should be God's glory not our own wants and desires. When we focus on ourselves we miss the points where God is blessing us in ways that we didn't realize before. I, therefore, urge you to keep your focus on God and not your own desires, because it just isn't about us anyway.