11.16.2009

Passion and Purpose

And take my life, let it be everything, all of me
Here I am, use me for Your glory
In everything I say and do, let my life honor You
Here I am living for Your glory


These words have taken on a whole new meaning...
The message tonight was about not allowing your passion to become your purpose. It took it a while for this to sink in... All this time I always that you're passion was your purpose, that what you were passionate about, is what you are meant to do, which means it's your purpose in life.
Surely, I'm not the only person who thinks in this manner. I was so lost at what Louie Giglio meant by this, I felt that it didn't apply to my passion, I started to brush it off, I started to say... my passion is my purpose, Louie's out of his mind, I'll just sit back and think... and then there was something inside of me, most likely God sitting on my shoulder saying... "Hey, doofus, pay attention." This. Is. Relevant.


Ephesians 5 tells us to "Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us..." Be. Imitators. This verse, as it has for the last 3 weeks, began to creep into my thought process, and I was like, ok... what does that have to do with my purpose Lord? Again, there He was, ready to answer... Louie made a comment about how things sometimes start "with a passion for Jesus, but somewhere along the way people get seduced into the glory of "me". It was like a head-smacking moment... My desire for Youth Ministry and Missions, isn't about ME... it's about JESUS, at least, it should be. I started to question myself, I started to wonder... am I doing this because I want to glorify Christ, or because I "think" it's my purpose, because I'm passionate. However, the whole concept still didn't resonate with me...


You know that moment, or moments, when you feel as if you are completely right... whether arguing with your girlfriend, a professor, a parent, a friend, whatever, and that person pulls out a book, a website, a newspaper, and says "Look! It's RIGHT HERE".. that was this moment. It was like God was saying "LOOK! LOOK! The answer is right in front of your face, and you are REFUSING to see it"... Since I got back from my retreat with MSM I must admit the care that I put into my studies has been lacking, I felt that I had it all figured out, I felt that I knew what God was calling me to do, and that was the end of the story. Once again though, God has more to say, I just had to listen... I realize now that, no matter what, my studies matter... Not because I'm not going to become a missionary, or not because I'm going to work in a bank, but because I. Don't. Know. The. Answers. I have no idea if I'll become a CEO of a Fortune 500 Company, or if I'm going to work as a bank teller, or grocery store manager, or be a stay at home parent. Only. He. Knows. And tonight it was God telling me that, just as it says in Colossians 3:17 "And whatever ever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him".. I don't know what I'll be doing in 10 years, 5 years, 1 year, or 1 month.. I don't even know where I'll be this summer, but tonight I realized, it doesn't matter. I will go where I'm called, and do whatever it is God wants me to do, if merely to glorify Him.
My. Future. Is. Only. Known. By. Him.


I don't know what the future holds, my guess is neither do you. The thing is, once you think you have it figured out, something will change. You will begin to feel lost, but take heart! God is there, He knows what he is doing and He will not lead you astray. So will I be a missionary full time?? No idea, I hope that I can one day work at Southland, and maybe that will happen, or maybe I'll end up leading 7 kids in a Youth Group in Mudpuddle, Mississippi... It won't matter, because I'm not doing it for me... Yes, it is my passion, and yes, I love kids.. but It. Is. Not. My. Purpose... my purpose is to further God's kingdom.. that's what YOUR purpose is. And it won't happen in the same way, some of us will be preachers, some will be Celebrities, others will manage a McDonalds.. but if you're doing it for the glory of God and the Kingdom is reflected in your work, then You. Are. Making. A. Difference.


After all that being said, after realizing a few things sitting there in the balcony, I still couldn't completely grasp the idea. So we started to sing, and I stood, and a flood of understanding ran over me as I sang the words, my heart cried out. I had been teaching an acronym I developed called A.C.T.S. to my Middle Schoolers... It stands for Accept Christ, Crave Him, Transform your life, and Surrender it All... The surrender part became something completely new tonight as I sang these words:

And take my life, let it be everything, all of me
Here I am, use me for Your glory
In everything I say and do, let my life honor You
Here I am living for Your glory



I understand now. I look back on two hours ago and think, wow, what and idiot I was being. In order to do God's work, I have to realize my purpose, and that purpose is NOT the same as my passion. I'm passionate about a lot of things, especially Youth, Missions, and the needy... but my purpose is to Glorify Christ and further the Kingdom in everything I do.


Let's infiltrate the culture, so we can influence the culture. Let's be authentic. No matter what your passion, make sure you go for it, but don't allow it to become your purpose. Make your purpose in life, to glorify the Kingdom... He'll take care of the rest.


Grace and Peace

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