Re-Lighting Your Fire

Thomas F. Fischer, M.Div, M.S.A.
With Greg Morris

Number 235

 

"Your job, Wormwood, is to provide me with people 
who do not care." 
           Screwtape in C.S. Lewis' Screwtape Letters

 

What Happened To Passion?

 

* Why do some people succeed where others have failed? 

* Why are some able to achieve more with less resources than others with greater assets? 

* Why do some accomplish more in one year than others do in a lifetime? 

 

Certainly it is not simply a matter of intelligence or education or giftedness or training. We all know those that have been blessed with tremendous intellect or vast opportunities but have not lived up to their potential. Could the deciding difference be passion?

Passion is that fire in the belly that separates mere contestants from
winners. It differentiates those with simply a passing interest from those
that are true activists. Passion not only gets you going but also keeps you
motivated. It is often the deciding factor between average and outstanding;
the difference between mediocre and memorable. We often have the tendency to be so thoughtful, calculating and cerebral regarding our leadership responsibilities that we have forgotten the excitement and passion that initially motivated us. 

 

Why do we lack passion? Let me suggest four reasons:

1. Routine.  We have allowed something precious to become familiar. We have adopted a "Been there - Done that" attitude regarding ministry and
leadership.

2. Acceptance and approval.  Passion both draws and repels people. Some are attracted to the clarity of focus while others are threatened by it. In our
desire to be liked, we have sometimes turned down our "heat" to an
acceptable level. We have replaced passion with a description of passion.

3. Apathy increases with age.  We cannot prevent the march of time, but we can prevent hardening of the spiritual arteries. Apathy is not a matter of
the mind as much as it is an issue of the heart.

4. We have no purpose beyond ourselves.  We have lost our vision and have failed to see the big picture as it relates to God's kingdom.

Passion is the first step to achievement as it helps establish your
priorities. What burns on the inside ultimately determines what is
accomplished on the outside.

From all outward appearances the church at Ephesus (Rev. 2.1-7) was a very solid, conservative church. They were relentless in their defense of the
truth, their endurance and perseverance. But all the accolades were negated by one small complaint…"You have left your first love." The passion of their relationship with the Savior had been replaced with the mechanics of ministry.

Don't allow that to happen to you. Realize that God desires passionate believers and leaders. Howard Hendricks has said that if you want others to bleed, you must hemorrhage. Now that's passion!

Greg Morris
www.leadershipdynamics.org

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