“If we were all so passionate about the gospel as we are about our personal endeavors, Jesus would come back tomorrow because the whole world would already hear the gospel.”
Some of the most authentic words I’ve heard came directly from my pastor. Think about it. Everyone (this includes all of us, I’m guilty too) has passions, hobbies, goals, dreams, and visions. Perfect. It’s healthy and important to have a plan in front of you and dreams to follow and visions to seek after. But the problem starts when the dreams and the focus on those dreams become bigger than our focus on Jesus.
Guilty.
Disclosure: I write this post directly from my heart and inspired by my pastor.
I’m very driven. In fact, I enjoy pressure, competition, challenges, and getting told “prove it”. Now of course sometimes this works great for me and other times having this sort of “drive” kicks me in the butt (literally).
For instance, I’m very passionate about health. I want to encourage people to live healthy and give them alternatives and show them how. Exercise, family, holistic medicine, blogging and nutrition are among my passions. And I will say, it’s often easy (and dangerous) to get so caught up and pursue each of these and forget about my quiet 1-on-1 time with Jesus.
Because sometimes it just feels “inconvenient“. Plus, I don’t always know who I’m talking to and what they are and aren’t comfortable with hearing so I just assume nutrition, family, exercise, and what not are safe topics.
Mistake #1: I’m concerned with what others think
Why is it easier to talk about our passions with complete strangers but we freak out when it comes to sharing Jesus? Honestly I hate this about my character so very much. I hate it so much that it’s become my BOLD BOLD prayer to change.
I want to be just as excited (and even more) about God. In fact, I want Jesus to be the core of every conversation. Because really Jesus is the only thing that matters. And He’s a pretty good conversation to bring up at school, workforce, mommy play dates, random person at the checkout aisle, the waitress, your babysitter, you name it.
Think about it, conversations such as daily life, our short-term and long-term goals, plans, future, aspirations come easy for us to chit chat about. These are topics we enjoy, find pleasure in, and look forward to sharing with others. Everyone loves talking about themselves and what drives them. But then Jesus and our tongues stop working and sometimes we even avoid that conversation all together to avoid “awkwardness”.
Why is it awkward? Because we don’t know what the other person will think. And we fail to share about the amazing things God is doing in our life. I’m right there with ya. I shy away and think, “nah, I’ll just keep it to myself.” But everyone needs to hear about HIS GREAT power.
Mistake #2: We turn to basic conversations
Safe topics. Comfortable convos. Simple talks. Just enough “small talk” so later you feel good about talking to this person and keeping the conversations neutral. But honestly, those talks lead to a dead end and don’t really go anywhere. How much can you talk about the weather? Or about your city? Or even about your job, business, family, etc., and these are all topics pointing right back to you. Let’s point to the Savior!
Mistake #3: Our passions become the main conversation
Now of course this isn’t always the case. Sometimes our passions, dreams, goals, and future plans turn into sharing the gospel. But other times, this doesn’t occur. I speak for myself. The gym is my go-to place. I love working out. I could talk to you about working out for hours, but it’s a conversation that eventually will die out. Meaningful conversations produce fruit. Of course talking about fitness/health is a great thing. In fact, it should be encouraged because more people need to be aware of their health. However, it’s when these passions become your life.
You can’t stop focusing on it, thinking about it, dreaming about the future, imaging life without it, prioritizing this passion and thinking of every possible chance to maximize your dream. Your passion has birthed into an obsession. And this is when the saying, “If we were all so passionate about the gospel as we are about our personal endeavors, Jesus would come back tomorrow because the whole world would already hear the gospel.”
It’s easy to share what you’re passionate about. I bet you do this everyday.
Why it Matters
Jesus can only come back when the whole world i.e. every single country has heard and the Bible is translated into every language. Then he can come back. Until then, he’s not returning. So it’s our duty as Christians to share THAT passion. And if our personal endeavors become MORE and Jesus becomes LESS, priorities are out of line. The world is full of empty dreams and trying to sell the next best business plan, best college degree that will give you loads of money, supplements for long-lasting age, you name it. These aren’t terrible things BUT they all fade. Make a name the world can remember and that name is Jesus.
Honestly, I don’t care if anyone remembers me. I want every second of what I do to point to Jesus, because at the end of the day HIS name is the only name to remember.
Watch Your Heart
I chase my dreams and that’s totally fine, BUT it’s when my passion turns greater than Jesus. And when we believe money, success, fame, and recognition can save us. Truth is, all the trophies, rewards, recognitions, money, fame, will fade and crumble to dust. I only have one life to live and I want every second to point to Jesus. My legacy doesn’t matter. The world teaches us that our legacy is what counts. The legacy of Jesus lives on and allowing that to shine through us is real LIFE! Pursue your dreams, goals, endeavors and what not, but make a name to remember and I think you know whose NAME that is!
So how are you pointing your every day life to Jesus?
