Passion of the...?

My friend Dan wrote this. Its a bit long but very good content

Follow your passions?
by Dan Grassi

Yes. It even makes us smile a bit when we say it. Passions are like personal hits- a play list in our mind of “rather be doing” activities like skiing, fishing, reading, playing music, etc. It is healthy to invest in such activities. It clears our minds, refreshes our souls and regenerates our bodies.

Where I get confused is how the church has got involved with the topic of “passions.”
There’s a hot button phrase that seems to get most congregants attention these days.
“Find ministry within your passions,” we say. We tickle the ears of new, growing, and even seasoned Christians with this jargon. Why? Well, we whole-heartedly believe that if a person finds their true “passion,” and are given the proper “tools” to use this activity to reach others for Christ, that this combination will result in a lasting model for discipleship. In theory, it’s a good idea. I mean who doesn’t want to serve in an area of personal competence or interest? After all, serving God shouldn’t feel like a “job” or “work” right? It might even be fun, one would hope. Is that altogether bad? Again, another good point. We don’t respond to God out of drudgery, duty or obligation. We should respond to God’s grace out of gratitude and love for a God who first loved us.

However, in the midst of the church’s good intentions (and they are) to engage people in service, I think a side of the truth has gotten blurry. When we see new Christians feeding on God supposedly in their passion-filled activities we think all is well. The question I would like to consider is this: Are passions really that accurate in producing faithful followers of Christ?

In my 14 years of ministry, I have counseled dozens of situations where the “faithful” have sat across my desk and explained to me their feelings of hopelessness with a sick child or parent. I’ve prayed with a mother of a drug-addicted son. I’ve watched faithful saints suffer with emotional, psychological and physical ailments. I have also seen amazing life-altering ministry that has resulted from these horrific situations. I’ve seen a family move across the globe to serve Christ in South Africa after a death of a spouse. I’ve seen a mother of a son that died of Leukemia write a book that ministered to probably thousands of families in similar situations. All of these Christians served God passionately, but did they serve out of their “passions.” I seriously doubt whether their personal preferences were consulted.

The point is this. I think we often resist telling the whole truth to the church. We don’t like to say, “you will serve God in this situation or that, even though it is painful.” We know that testing situations build perseverance and perseverance breads character, and character is what is required to live a life of faith. What we resist saying is that most of the time we will not bend a knee to God until we are thrown into a situation where we feel like we are ready to break. That’s a hard “pitch” to sell a congregation during a “ministry fair.”

Ok. Let’s get something clear. I don’t completely disagree with happiness. I’m not a Scrooge. I want a good life like the rest of us. I just think passions are too risky, too over-sold, too inflated, and an often fickle, fair-weathered, air-filled proposition to sell to the church to get them into “service.” Should we be down-in-the-mouth Christians who never serve in our preferred areas or encourage others to do the same? Of course not… I hope to serve God my entire life in my area of strength. However, I submit that the “joy of the Lord” is found deep within the “less desired” situations of our spiritual journey. When we serve God faithfully, no matter the cost, there is a residue of life’s pains and disappointments that bring us closer to what Christ wants for us—a lasting joy. Not a joy that the thrill-seeking, weekend warriors for Christ will nearly experience. I am not being judgmental of the generally satisfaction among Christians and Christian ministry as a whole. We are doing a lot of things right. I’m simply calling the church to re-evaluate our thinking and language. I hope we can satisfy the church with not hollow promises, but something more resonant with humanity, something inspiring, something visceral to the spiritual soul. Isn’t that the kind of passionate Christians we want filling our world? Following your passions? I think we should tell the church the whole story. It’s worth the risk.