What does Shaquille O’Neil, Jack Nicklaus, Mohammad Ali, Donald Trump, and Oprah Winfrey all have in common? And what do they have in com- mon with people like TD Jakes, Rod Parsley, RW Schambach, Oral Roberts, Kenneth Hagin Sr. and Reinhard Bonnke? PASSION! All of them became well known, even World famous, because they are passionate about their gift.
Joshua 1:8 says, “This book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.”(NKJV, emphasis mine) What is the key element in this verse to being prosperous and having good success? A passion for God and His Word!
As a minister for twenty years, I have discovered the key to staying on track, staying productive, and staying successful in God’s Kingdom, and that is, staying passionate in all things that pertain to His Kingdom. We all have felt at times, “Weary in well doing,” but it is in these times that I stop, take a deep breath, relax, and refocus.
I believe that one of Satan’s big tools is to quench, stifle, and steal our passion for the things of God. The Word declares that the enemy comes only to steal, kill and destroy. God has called every one of us to be passionate for Him; to be passionate for His Spirit, His anointing, His Word, and for His people.
I have learned that everyone is passionate about something. In my travels I have seen tractor trailers with such motto’s on the side of them as, “Bridgestone tires; ‘Passion for Excellence,’” “Laury.com; ‘Confidence in Motion,’” and “Purina pet food; ‘Your Pet, Our Passion.’” These companies are nationally known because they are passionate about their products.
The famous poet, Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Nothing great was ever accomplished without enthusiasm.” We as believers ought to exude passion. Why is Donald trump so well known? Because he has always had a passion for real estate. He eats, sleeps, and drinks a passion for property. Why is Jesse Duplantis so well known? Because he is passionate about reaching souls at a world wide level. Passion has elevated them and it will elevate us as well in our towns, communities and cities and in our spheres of influence, and as our passion grows, so will our territory of influence and impact.
Passion precedes presence. God spoke to me several years ago and said, “I want you to travel on the evangelistic field and reignite My people with a passion for Me. Share with them what I have done in you and what I have shared with you concerning a passion for Me.” He showed me that a passion for Him is the doorway to His presence in an unprecedented way. He taught me that praise is a manifestation of passion. God inhabits the praises of His people.
Passion produces. When I get so full of love for Him, I can’t help but express myself to Him. When you get so full of love for your spouse and children, you can’t help but express it to them in a manifested way. Our natural passion for our spouse produces offspring.
Then He gave me the revelation that if passion produces in the natural, the same must be true for the spiritual. As I am passionate for God, His Spirit communes with my Spirit and seeds of answered prayer are planted, seeds of blessing are planted, seeds of miracles are planted, seeds of power and anointing are planted, and as I cultivate those things in prayer, praise, worship and Word, at the right time and full season, we will birth those things.
Abraham was a success because he was passionate; Moses delivered the people out of bondage because of a passion to fulfill God’s word; Joshua and Caleb had a passion to possess the promised land; David danced before the Lord with a passion; after Pentecost, “Peter preached with boldness”; blind Bartimaeus cried out all the more with a passion to be healed; and the woman with the issue of blood pressed with a passion through the crowd, not caring what others said or thought to touch the hem of His garment to be made whole. Jesus was so passionate for us He willingly laid down His life so that we could have “life and that more abundantly.” Christ carried a cross for me, surely I can carry a fire for Him.
What is the key to increased success, influence, and prosperity for us, and the people we pastor? An ever increasing Passion!
