When you find yourself doing what you are passionate about and gifted for, life is at its most satisfying and fulfilling. So, now that you have explored your personality and your spiritual gifts and created a personal purpose statement, it’s time to consider your passion.
What stirs your heart? Whom do you most want to serve? What problem do you most want to solve? When you can focus your energy in the direction of your gifts and passions, you are off and running a race you are sure to win.
What does winning look like? It looks like doing a job or serving in a ministry where you get to do exactly what you want to do. Perhaps not every moment, but your overall daily focus is what your heart most wants to do. That’s a target worth aiming for, right?
You and I don’t want to spend our lives doing only what needs to be done to survive. You and I want to thrive. We want to fulfill the purposes that God created us for. We want to fulfill divine potential for God’s glory. What does that look like?
It looks like getting up every day knowing that you are functioning in your gifts and according to your passions. Listen, everyone needs to make a living. If your income producer and your ministry service happen to be the same, then you are in a privileged minority. But if you can find an income producer that has at least some elements of your passion, it will be more satisfying. For you, your ministry service may be the place where your heart and hands meet. That’s when you are firing on all cylinders, doing what you love and what you are gifted for.
Perhaps it is ministering to children or leading a small group. You may serve at the Humane Society, a pregnancy support center, or a homeless shelter. What makes your heart sing? Find that place and pour your energy into it. Where your heart and hands meet is the place where you thrive.
Pray over your passions and personal purpose statement to determine the next step on your journey. How does God want you to walk out your purpose as part of His mission? I’ll tell you the truth: How you walk it out may change with the seasons of your life, but having a clear vision of your part of the mission anchors each season. A clear vision of your preferred future fuels passion.
I know that I am called to nurture, equip, influence, and inspire others to fulfill divine potential for God’s glory. That is my personal purpose statement. How I have fulfilled that purpose has changed over the years, but the statement itself has only been tweaked. My personal purpose statement is a recognition of the way that God made me. It acknowledges my desire to support and inspire people. It includes my personality as a people-oriented introvert (Yep, that’s a real thing!) It acknowledges my spiritual gifts that include shepherding, teaching, and wisdom. My personal purpose statement has guided and influenced me as I have made choices in pursuing God’s call on my life to become a pastor, a leadership coach, and . . . an author. It inspires me every day to remain people-oriented and keeps me from getting caught up in just getting things done. It helps me to remember that I am created on purpose for a purpose. No matter what I am doing, I want to help people fulfill their divine potential for God’s glory. That is my dream because I believe it is God’s dream for me. That keeps my passion fire burning.
What is His dream for you?
Excerpt from The YES Adventure: Transform Your Life with One Word by Cathleen Zahradnik. Check it out here.