What Can Passion Do For You?

Jul 5, 2005

I am not sure if you watched the Michael Jackson trial with any interest at all. I must admit that I was very interested…but not so much in the trial…I could not keep but wondering every time they showed a picture of Jackson’s house or the courthouse, “Who are all of those people standing outside with posters and banners and who are cheering for this dude?”

Seriously, did these people not have a job? Did any of them give up their job to go and support a man who probably doesn’t even know their name—and who frankly doesn’t care to know them?

What would cause them to do something like this? It’s simple—they had passion.

Passion causes people to do things—sometimes extreme things…things that just can’t be helped or controlled. A passionate person is emotional—period. They may not be emotional about everything, but if you push the right button you will see what they have passion for—and their actions will be evident that they have passion.

And to be honest—we expect passion from people in certain situations, take a football game for instance…we see a dude wearing the team colors…his team scores—would we all not think it weird if he did not celebrate, yell, scream, give them people around him a high five. Truth is that in that situation we expect passion to be demonstrated…and if he/she does not demonstrate passion then oftentimes we question whether or not they are true fans of team whose colors they wear.

Passion always moves us to action…if it doesn’t then it isn’t passion—it’s probably just a bad case of gas.

Take love for example—when a man is in love with a women there is hardly anything that he would not do. He writes songs, sends her flowers, will run up enormous telephone bills—take long road trips just to see her. What causes this? Once again—passion, it is passion that moves him to action.

So how does all of this tie into Jesus? Simple—are you passionate for Him? If the answer is yes, then what action is your passion leading you to take?

I don’t understand the thinking of some people. When people support Michael Jackson no one seems to think that it a little weird. When people scream at a sporting event—they are never asked to be silent so that the other attenders may observe in reverence. However, when someone is passionate for Christ—when someone’s passion clearly leads them to action—then some consider that to be weird.

Why?

I think it because we have a large set of mixed up priorities in this society in which we live. And please do not take this post wrong. I am not referring to showing emotion in a worship service. I have witness people who can be really emotional in a worship service—but never carry it outside the walls of the church. Why? No true passion.

If you have a passion for Jesus then the bottom line is this—your passion for Him will affect the way you live. It will affect what you choose to do…and what you choose not to do. Passion for Jesus will not allow you to ever attend a church without getting involved. Passion for Jesus always affects your wallet and your calendar. You cannot sit in the stands and merely let the Kingdom’s work be done in front of you—if you have passion then you MUST take action…you simply cannot help it.

I am not advocating that Christians MUST do anything—I fully affirm that we are saved by grace—not by works. But the thing to capture here is that we do not do things for God to get God to love us—we do them BECAUSE God loves us…and our passion for Him captivates our heart and our mind.

So what is your passion for Him stirring you to do? Just curious…