John Maxwell says everything rises or falls on leadership. I get that. What I have not been able to get a grip on is how to help others have a sustained inner motivation to pursue God passionately. I believe this internal passion is the catalyst for having a sustained love and faith in God. Great kings in the Bible did noble things—until their motivator and guide died. I’ve seen believers at every level flame out. People have asked how I have sustained my passion to know God more fully. I’ve tried to analyze that and now my goal is to help believers develop a sustainable passion for God regardless of what life throws at them—including the aging process.
Ezekiel described what Jesus called being born again in chapter 36:25-27. The key verse is, I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules (Ezekiel 36:27, ESV). However, that strong intrinsic desire to love and obey God is delicate.
God plans for us to have peace and contentment. I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid. John 14:27 (NLT2) The Psalmist wrote LORD, my heart is not proud; my eyes are not haughty. I don’t concern myself with matters too great or too awesome for me to grasp. Instead, I have calmed and quieted myself, like a weaned child who no longer cries for its mother’s milk. Yes, like a weaned child is my soul within me (Psalm 131:1-2, NLT2).
What confuses us is that while the Bible teaches, He wants us to enjoy His peace, it also teaches He allows Satan to afflict us. The Jews went to worship singing greatly, have they afflicted me from my youth (Psalm 129:1, ESV). God allowed Satan to afflict Job, Jesus, Paul and scores of others He loved. It is insightful that He allowed Satan to directly tantalize or attack their desires, e.g., for Jesus to make stone into bread. He does the same with us. Why?
Even though He is right by our side and ready to empower, He insists we initiate the God-given gift of desire for Him in the face of anything or anyone in our world. Jesus said, you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved (Matthew 10:22, ESV). This is an incredible strategy God has in mind to sift us as He sifted Peter (Luke 22:31-32). He did this to present her to himself as a glorious church without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish. Instead, she will be holy and without fault (Ephesians 5:27, NLT2).
God supplies us money to buy flowers to enjoy all summer. However healthy and beautiful those plants were, we (really Connie) had to plant, nurture and water them for them to mature into their beauty. God gives you and me the desire for Him, but we MUST do our part to pursue that desire for Him. How? By decisively choosing to be an apprentice of Jesus, you closely examine what the Bible teaches about His life and bend your lifestyle to conform to what it teaches. Passionately chasing after that fragile desire results in His peace and joy and faith growing stronger and stronger within you. As all of us reflect the Lord’s glory with faces that are not covered with veils, we are being changed into his image with ever-increasing glory. This comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit (2 Corinthians 3:18, GW). Here is the secret to the sustainability factor!
How can you better guard and nurture your desire to be one of Jesus’ apprentices? If your spiritual desire has been compromised, ask the Spirit to help you reposition yourself so He can rekindle your fading desire to seek Him with all your heart. Sustainability is found in the intentional savoring of His peace and joy, and revelation, which are marks of His transforming presence.