Passion

Since the end of our Fabulous February Photo of the Day event, I have found myself with nothing to really write about.  Sometimes it is just that way for me.  Sometimes I need just some quiet to think, read, think some more, read more...well you get the picture.  One thought has been consistently coming to the forethought of my mind ~ passion.  I find people's passions to be very interesting, and very telling about who they are as a person.  No, I do not judge them based entirely on this one thing, but I really believe it gives me an open window into what makes them tick.

Just scan your news feed page on Facebook any given day and you will most likely clue into issues that people are passionate about.  Politics, religion, lifestyle choices, relationships, injustices, humor...it runs the gamut.  In fact, KONY 2012 has picked up some real steam in the past 24 hours with a video (which I haven't viewed yet) that went viral and has incited the passions of young people to right a wrong. Millions have viewed it, with many deciding that they must act. While I don't know the details of the issue, it is exciting to see young people passionate about something bigger than themselves ~ adults, we could take a clue sometimes! :D

This has me asking myself, "What am I truly passionate about?".  How do I really judge that?  Some say that you can judge a person's heart by their checkbook. Oh boy. If you looked at mine lately, you'd say I was passionate about eating out. Not really.  But, if you look deeper there is a clue to what I am passionate about.  When I was balancing the old checkbook and mumbling about eating out, it dawned on me that all but a very few of those meals were ones where I'd met with another person for ministry, encouragement, fellowship, or just plain old fun. That clued me in to one passion ~ people.  I do enjoy people.  I love learning about how they view life, what makes them happy, what makes them angry, what fuels their passions.  I love to encourage their hearts (often through their tummies!).  I love to laugh with them over old stories of antics we'd been involved in or future adventures to embark on.  I want to be an influence in their lives.

Another area that I looked at was my social media involvement ~ my Facebook posts.  While I used to be a lot more political than I am now, one might say that I am passionate about it by the number of Fox news articles I happen to post.  Nope.  It's not about the politics...it's about the character of the person for me.  I was sad and thrilled when Mike Huckabee stepped out of the presidential race for 2012.  Sad because I respect the character of that man.  His character is built on his relationship with Christ.  I was thrilled because his decision to step down was IN SPITE of what the world said- go for it.  He sought the face of his Savior and came away from that encounter knowing that the Lord did not want him running.  He said no. He is one of the very few good political stories that I've posted.  Most have been examples of the character-less individuals who are running this country.  They sit on both sides of the aisle and I despise their greed.  And I fear that it could easily be me making self serving decisions if I were in their shoes.

A final area is my blog.  What do I find myself writing about, thinking about, talking about?  That's easy...the Lord and His Word.  He has grown me so much and His Word has peeled away layers of wrong thinking and I find myself just having to talk about it.  Not because I've arrived, but because He deserves so much glory and gratitude from my life.  I've been told that it appears as I have it together.  Trust me, appearances can be deceiving.  I am truly a mess on the inside most of the time. However, I don't camp out there.  I embrace that I am a work in progress, that He sees me through the cleansing blood of His Son, and that I am a daughter of the King.  That's pretty special. I have come to a point in my life that I welcome Him in to make the changes needed ~ it's not usually an easy thing to allow.  It's always a huge blessing in the end.  His Word is invaluable in the transformation.  I just finished a word study on honesty.  I am still working through all the implications of that study, but it has so convicted me that immediate change has occurred where I was lacking character in this area.  God's word...it never returns void.

So, what am I passionate about?

Influencing the hearts of people to develop godly character through Jesus Christ and His Word.

Think I found my new life mission statement......