How Bad Do You Want It?

It’s January 6^th. By now a lot of people who have made New Year’s resolutions are giving up. Less than a week into the year they have apparently run out of gas. Did you have one?

Bigger question: Is there something you always say you want, something you tell everybody you are all about, a dream in your heart that you say you’re working towards? If the answer to that is ‘yes’, then I have another question: Are you really pursuing it?

I watch people all the time, young and old, go from being crazy excited about something to not doing a thing in the world about it. They get discouraged when they meet any resistance; they give up when things don’t fall perfectly into place the first time they try. Basically, they want this amazing dream to just fall into their lap without putting forth any real effort…and when that doesn’t happen, they jump ship.

It irks me enough when people won’t follow through on the big plans they have and talk about to everyone, but it absolutely sets my righteous anger ablaze when people won’t act on what they’ve been given straight from God. There’s a distinction here. Yes, God puts dreams and passions in you, and you should definitely follow them (and you know I write about that a lot), but sometimes it’s bigger.

For example, I like to travel. I might make a New Year’s resolution that I will save enough money this year to go to Europe. That’s something I would just like to do. Also, I love music. So I made up my mind a long time ago that I’d like to be in a band. After talking about it for years, I finally formed one. God put that passion for music in me and I’m living out one of my dreams right now.

But here’s where it gets bigger. While I do like traveling, and I do have a passion and talent for music, there are some things that go to that next level. I KNOW I’m supposed to lead worship. I know it because what started as something that was just another way to do music became a passion I burned for. I found myself being a better expression of who I am created to be when engaging in worship. The desires of my heart started to change when I entered into the presence of God and just loved on Him and let Him love on me. And then I started hearing from God about leading worship—how to do it, how not to do it, etc. He told me to leave one place so I could be open to going somewhere else. He gives me words to speak while leading worship. I’ve had people prophesy over me about my role in leading worship. These things are next level things! These are things God has told me!

When people ignore this kind of thing in their life, it kills me. Do you think following the voice of God is always going to be easy? Do you think that it won’t require lots of effort and sacrifice? Of course it is going to be hard at times, and you will probably have to give up a lot in your obedience. But you’ve got to make up your mind that you are just going to do it—no matter what other people say, or what obstacles are put in your path.

It really boils down to how bad you want it. Is it worth giving up comfort, money, recognition, approval?? Is it worth pushing through walls and beating on doors until they finally open?? Is being obedient to your Creator and Lover of Your Soul important enough to you to lay down everything else so you can become what you’re intended to be?? I know it is.

I can promise you it’ll never be more than you can handle with Him on your side. Pray for strength and perseverance and He will faithfully give it to you. Father, I pray for strength and perseverance to follow You and live out what You’ve told me. Give me clearer direction on what to do and the boldness to do it. In Jesus Christ of Nazareth’s holy name, Amen.

Set the Tone

Hey guys! Happy New Year! I hope 2011 has already gotten off to a great start for you!

I’m betting a lot of you are resting up and hanging out today, watching some college football, or some movies. I just wanna encourage you to throw in a few things of substance today as well. Let today set the tone for the rest of your year --> whatever you are passionate about and plan on doing this year, go ahead and get your feet wet. I’ll use myself as an example.

My top priorities never change: 1. God, 2. my family. Thus, I have already had some Jesus time today, and already called up my family to talk to them for a bit. After those two things, my plate gets really jumbled up, and I juggle priorities depending on what I feel the Spirit is leading me to do, what I feel is most important for the particular season, and the urgency of certain tasks. Since today is January 1st, I am going to spend a little time on all the biggest things in my life. After I finish this blog, I’ve got a whole list of things I’m gonna spend a little time on b/c I’m wanting to set the year off right in all of the areas I’m passionate about… I’ll spend some time at the church, I’ll write some music, I’ll hang with friends, I’ll do some worship, I’ll hit the gym, and I’ll do some business things. I’m gonna do it all!

I hope you take advantage of this wonderful opportunity to set the tone for an entire year. Use the start of 2011 to reflect on the goodness of what God has already done, take a look at your life from a fresh perspective, reanalyze where your heart and your passions lie, reprioritize how you spend your time, reenergize as you let the love and joy and peace and power of the Holy Spirit flow all over you, and get yourself ready for big things to happen!

May the God of Heaven bless you all as you seek after Him and live out your passions according to His purposes and for His glory. In Jesus Christ of Nazareth’s holy lovely awesome and righteous mighty name, Amen!!!

Embrace Your Greatness!

If you have the audacity to embrace the greatness put in you, people are going to mock you. They will scoff, they will laugh. They will tell you that you can’t do it, they will tell you that you are crazy. They will try anything to keep you from pushing past the norm into that magnificent place where your talents and giftings collide with the power of Throneroom blessing.

Your Creator, Our God in Heaven, has put things in you that you are passionate about. It doesn’t matter if that passion is in the vein of the usual “churchy” gifts; i.e. teaching, preaching, music, mission work, etc. It doesn’t matter if it’s something that people haven’t traditionally used to glorify God. Your love for fixing cars, designing clothes, flipping houses, politics, pet grooming, business, fitness, cooking, or whatever else has been put in you by God. If the Bible is not telling you it's sinful, then it's probably from Heaven :)

You know it’s your passion because the way it makes you feel alive, the way it moves your heart in a way hardly anything else can. That feeling is what makes your passion special. You already have an inherent drive and motivation to do these things, and do them well, because it’s what you naturally get pleasure from. It’s easy to do things you enjoy!

It’s also that zeal which will cause people to take notice. Bill Johnson, the lead pastor of Bethel Church in Redding, California, says, “When I live out of discipline, I am admired; when I live out of passion, I am contagious.” Everybody can tell when you are doing something you love. It’s obvious. When you talk about what you’re doing your eyes light up, there is excitement in your voice, and nobody can get you to shut up about it :) It’s infectious. Sometimes I’ll get excited with you just from listening—even when it’s an area I could care less about!

So what is your passion? And why aren’t you living it out? I don’t care how normal (or unorthodox) you think your passion is, if you purpose it in your heart to live it out and line it up with the Word of God to bring glory to the Father, you can be an earth shaker. A business mogul. A fashion icon. A TV fitness guru. A sold-out, Spirit-filled, President of the United States of America.

Don’t let those that laugh at you keep you from your pursuit. Let’s be real: most of them don’t want you to go after your dreams because they are sitting around not pursuing theirs. The prospect of you doing something you love and wildly succeeding at it makes them uncomfortable…and maybe even a little jealous. If they’ve given up on their dreams, or bought into the lie that says they are insignificant and can’t possibly make a difference in this world, then you going after your passions just might get them all kinds of messed up.

You have to be ok with the fact that a lot of people are going to hope you don’t succeed. You have to know from the start that when you embrace the greatness that lies within you that people who have settled for average will oftentimes try to convince you to settle for average as well. On the one hand, as referenced above, your passion is contagious; on the other hand, to some people, you are absolutely scary.

* * * * *

I’ve made up my mind that I’m not going to maintain mediocrity so that I can keep other people feeling comfortable. Does that decision ruffle some feathers? Yes. Does it damage some relationships? Unfortunately, yes. But that decision also unleashes the potential for greatness to flow out of me. It’s a decision that’s well worth the cost. I hope you join me.

Spectating

I was born and raised in Kentucky. So it goes without saying that Wildcat basketball is in my blood. Rupp Arena, Midnight Madness, 7 National Titles: the best program on earth. I buy UK merchandise, tailor my plans for 6 months out of the year around tip-off times, and yell until my throat becomes a tattered mess of reddened tendons. I’m a true fan.

March is my favorite time of the year. I, along with millions of other fans across the country (albeit supporting lesser teams), sit on pins and needles as one-by-one every heavyweight and Cinderella is knocked out of the tournament until only one team is left standing. Year in and year out, it is the one sporting spectacle that never fails to deliver.

But for all the zeal I pour into cheering on the Big Blue, how much more energy would I exude if I could play for them? Even in defeat, wouldn’t it be infinitely more satisfying to be in the game than to just scream at my TV from the living room?

Here’s the deal: God never made you to be a spectator in your life. Those skills you have, those things that make you tick—they were put there by your Maker. The way you can paint, the way you can organize, the way your energy is infectious, the way you can listen to people empty their hearts out, the way you see things differently—all put there by the Lord.

These giftings you have are meant to be used. Sometimes it can be easy to watch the star players and just be content to say, “Man, they are awesome!” Yes, they are awesome. But one of the cool things God did was make us all part of one body. You see, a body needs all of its parts to perform at its peak. No, we may not have the flashy, show-stopping abilities of John Wall, but we all have something to add to the team.

Is it good for you to support others? Yes. Is it OK for you to not take the lead in every single situation? Yes. Should you rabidly cheer on those around you who are following hard after their own dreams? Absolutely. But God has something for you, too. Something that He designed specifically with you in mind. Something that is all your own. Go get it.