The Keys to Passionate Lives

Passion… Sounds tempting. Sounds exhilarating. But it also sounds like an unachievable pipe dream to many. I’m not talking about romance or sexuality, I’m talking about real passion. Passion that drives your life, that adds meaning and vibrance to daily living. Many are looking for this type of passion, but life has a way of draining it from our lives, doesn’t it? Where does it seem to go? How can we get it back?

I would first challenge that passion flows from our passionate Creator. The depth of our passion in life will only flow as deep as our connection to Him. So then the key to passion is connecting with our Creator. Sounds simple enough, doesn’t it? In many ways it is. But too many times, life’s overcrowded, busy nature seems to skew our focus on connecting with the loving, passionate God we were made to connect with.

So I would challenge you to ask a clarifying question to help declutter the schedule and understand what REALLY matters. This will in turn lead us closer to Jesus and result in living a life with passionate intentionality.

Psalm 90:12 says “…teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.” In other words, help us to remember that life is short. Help us to recognize that we don’t have an infinite amount of time on this earth. From that perspective I will “gain a heart of wisdom” and truly learn how to prioritize my life.

If we truly knew our time on earth was limited, maybe down to just one month, imagine how different our daily priorities would look. All the things that keep us “busy” now would probably be pushed off to the back burner. And all those things on our checklists that we’ve always wanted to get to would suddenly become a priority, wouldn’t it? We’d make the time!

Our overcrowded lifestyles keep us reacting to seemingly urgent (yet deceptive) tasks when in reality we’re overlooking the most important things to do too often.  The keys to unlocking God’s passion in our lives are simply put this way…

1 – Do Something Drastic – don’t make small changes and expect them to have huge payoffs. Think about every day life like the Psalmist wrote… “teach me to number my days.” Ask yourself regularly, “what would I do right now if I knew my time was limited?” Then act on it!

2 – Accept the Unexpected – Don’t expect everything to go according to plan and don’t try to control it all when it doesn’t. Accept the fact that daily interruptions will happen. But remember, God takes full responsibility for a life that is fully devoted to Him. If you’ve devoted your life to Jesus, don’t forget that even supposed “interruptions” are under His control. Accept it and confess, “I don’t know what to do, but I know I need You.” He will help you figure it out.

3 – Make God Space – Even Jesus had to do this (Mark 1:35). Carve time out of your day, special pauses where you stop doing everything and spend time with God. Our passion will only flow from Him. If we are not connecting with Him, our lives shrivel up and die (John 15:4). We need His love, power and interaction on a regular basis.

Remembering your days are numbered is the first step to living a life with a “no-regrets” kind of passion. It will clear your perspective to help you see what’s really important. And that will provide you the wisdom to make the right decision when prioritizing your daily life. So go out and LIVE PASSIONATELY!!!