PROGRAM W-1754 – Part II
I’ve explored how we need a vision of what God wants to do through us, and that vision should be the motivation which helps us break out of our boxes and accomplish our dreams. But the first question we must confront is whether or not our vision, our passion, is from God or not.
Is It of God?
How do you know if this passion or vision is a God-thing or not? Here are seven signs that I believe will help you answer this question.
Sign Number 1 – It won’t go away
If God has a plan that will take you out of your comfort zone—out of some box you’re in—it will not go away. As you pray about it (and that must be step number one!), it will get stronger not weaker.
Believe me, I’ve had lots of other passions and ideas that I thought, at first, were something God wanted me to pursue, but it didn’t take long for those things to fade. If you have to keep pushing the doors open and there is resistance on every hand, most of the time it’s because God is saying either “No, not that” or “No, not now.”
Of course, we need to be persistent and not give up at the first obstacle. However, if it is of God, it won’t go away in your heart. Instead it will grow and, even though it looks impossible, you just won’t be able to get away from it!
Sign Number 2 – Your motivation will be to serve God and others
God doesn’t give us passions or visions just to make us feel good about ourselves or help us achieve our personal goals. If it’s from God, you will be motivated out of a love for God and for people, and it will be all about serving.
Remember what Jesus told us in Mark 9:35: He said, “Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all.” God’s vision for your life will lead you to become a servant, in one way or another. Are you ready for that?
Sign Number 3 – There will be a need for it
God is not inefficient and he does things “in a fitting and orderly way” (1 Corinthians 14:40). If God is leading you out of your box, it’s because someone needs you out of that box, doing what God has for you to do. It won’t be a whimsical flight of your imagination. It won’t be because you just want to do something creative or different. It will be to meet a need.
Sign Number 4 – God will open doors for you and confirm it through his Word
If this vision is a God-thing, you won’t have to push, shove, beg, and plead. You will have to be persistent, but God will open some doors for you and confirm that this is of him. You will see some small and/or large miracles as God opens these doors. You will be amazed, frightened, awestruck, and excited!
I remember when I began to see that my radio ministry was not just for one station in Chicago. I had been mentored and encouraged to enlarge my vision and take the program to other Christian stations. I don’t frighten easily, but as I began to think about growing this radio ministry, I was scared. This was way bigger than anything I had ever thought it would be and I would need resources that I didn’t have. So I said, “Lord, I need confirmation from your Word that this is of you, or I’m not going to do it. Give me clear guidance, please.”
My reading that day was in Isaiah 50. Verses four and seven simply hit me between the eyes that day:
“The Sovereign Lord has given me well-instructed tongue to know the Word that sustains the weary. Because the Sovereign Lord helps me I will not be disgraced. Therefore have I set my face like flint and I know I will not be put to shame.”
There was no doubt in my mind that these two verses were God’s voice to me, his promise to me, and his green light to enlarge my ministry. I can’t tell you how many times in the past years I’ve gone back to that passage. When you get out of your comfortable box and start pursuing the passion God has given you, you need a promise from his Word to hang on to. Ask God for it.
Sign Number 5 – Your spiritual leader(s) will counsel and/or encourage you
All of us need and should have those people in our lives who are our spiritual leaders. For the most part, this should come through our church leaders. You need to be in a church where the truth is taught and where you have godly leadership. There may also be other wise people in our lives whom we trust to give us godly counsel and who will speak the truth in love to us.
Not all of our visions will require support or approval from our church leadership, but it is always good to talk things over with trusted people before you jump out of your box!
Sign Number 6 – God will give you the right people to help you
God put some key people in my path to instruct me and help me. He has given me mentors, employees, donors, and board members along the way—some popping up out of nowhere—to come alongside me and help me.
Your passion will most likely involve others, and you’ll need help and guidance. If it’s a God-passion, those people will come your way.
Sign Number 7 – You probably won’t be qualified to do it
That’s a strange thing to say, isn’t it? If God is trying to take you out of your box and move you into a new vision, most likely your first obstacle to overcome will be that you know how totally unqualified and inadequate you are to do it. The Apostle Paul told us why this is true:
“But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him” (1 Corinthians 1:27-29).
If it was something that you could do in yourself, who would get the glory for it? Getting out of your box and moving into unknown territory will be absolutely too much for you to do! That’s why God chose you, the Apostle Paul writes. He chooses those who are not qualified and equips them in ways they could never imagine—then he gets all the glory.
Your recognition of your inadequacy is the best thing you’ve got going for you because it will force you to depend on God, to be humble, and to be teachable, and you will always know it was all about God. Jesus plus nothing equals everything!
It’s a learning process
Here are some of the things I’ve learned and am learning along the way as I’ve stepped out of my box to follow God’s leading in my life.
* Not all of my bright ideas are God’s passion for me.
* Some passions have a waiting period while God prepares me.
* Not everyone will share my passion—some people will discount it or try to discourage me.
* Perseverance is a large part of pursuing my passion.
* Passions take lots of hard work and there are some days when I wish I’d never had a passion. (But not many—not many!)
* Passions sometimes have a life-span; a beginning and an ending, and I have to be sensitive to know when it’s time to move on.
* When one passion dies, another comes along.
* A God-given passion is always a joy; it is fulfilling; it is, in itself,
Remember this when it comes to pursuing your passion:
1. If you don’t go for it, it will fade and you’ll miss the blessing. Use it or lose it.
2. You will be held accountable to the Lord for the passions he has given to you. You’ll stand before Jesus at the Judgment Seat of Christ and he will recite the passion he had for you and want to know why you didn’t pursue it. You will be speechless and without excuse.
3. The more you pursue your passion, the more ability and gifts you will have to accomplish it. God is not going to waste talents on you if you’re not going to use them. He’s waiting to see if you are serious about pursuing the passion he has put inside of you. If so, he will stretch you, gift you, and equip you like you’ve never dreamed. But that won’t happen until you put your oar in the water and start to row.
4. When you pursue your passion, your self-esteem issues will fade away. Frankly, you won’t have much time to think about yourself because a God-passion puts you in the middle of the lives of other people and you’ll be too busy to worry much about yourself. However, you’ll discover somewhere along the way that you feel better about yourself than you ever have because, in pursuing your passion, you’ll find the fulfillment and success that has eluded you. It’s a by-product of following God’s will for you. It just happens when you pursue your passion.
5. When you pursue your passion, God will start working on polishing you to be the godly person he wants you to be. You will be forced to pray more, to study your Bible more, to get to know Jesus better than ever, and to depend on him more.
Please, for the sake of the Kingdom of Christ and the glory due to Jesus Christ, get over putting yourself in some box that prevents you from the good works God has planned for you to do. When you get out of that box, you will move into the abundant life that Jesus promised for those who love him.
What box are you in? What is keeping you from breaking out?