Passion, Vision, Action

Time to start something new?

I remember waking up in the middle of the night with three words circling in my mind - Passion, Vision, Action!  That was several years ago, but ever since, they have become like guideposts for my life. Whenever I am seeking direction, thinking about something new, considering an opportunity or even just feeling stuck, I go back to these words.  

Passion speaks to our true inner motivation. It’s our driving force. Our reason for being. What gets us going each day.  What is at our core?

US footballer and decorated Army hero, Pat Tilman said -“Passion is what makes life interesting, what ignites our soul, fuels our love and carries our friendships, stimulates our intellect, and pushes our limits”. 

And so I wonder - what makes your life interesting? Ignites your soul? Fuels your love? Carries your friendships? Stimulates your intellect? Pushes your limits? 

Understanding and growing our core passion and what motivates us is the starting point of everything else. 

Vision is about seeing the way forward. It’s like shining a light down the path, so we can see more clearly ahead.  

Hellen Keller, well known author, activist and speaker who was blind said “The only thing worse than being blind, is having sight but not vision”.  

We all need vision, hope for the future, the ability to see a little further down the road.  Vision is not just about passively waiting for the way to be clear - vision is also the skill of creating your next steps, designing the path, solving the problems along the way and seeing the potential future. 

Action is about getting started.   Passion and vision on their own are just a dream, a hope, or a wish. 

To actually move forward and accomplish anything, we need to get started.  As Steve Jobs, founder of Apple said “It’s not done until it ships.”  That means action. And often, taking action also means having courage.  

Do you have a measure of courage to grow your passion, develop your vision, and put it into action?  Can you relate to this in your own journey? 

Not only do we need courage, we also need people who show that way. 

My primary role model for life and leadership is Jesus of Nazareth.  To me, Jesus remains the greatest example of leadership the world has ever seen.  He started a movement that has changed the world more than any other person, yet he never wrote a book, didn’t travel outside his native homeland, and His teaching ministry lasted only three years.  However his impact goes beyond anyone else who has ever lived, to the point today where over 2 billion people claim to follow him. And nowhere is his leadership philosophy clearer to me than in the Bible book of Matthew, chapter 9, where Jesus us traveling throughout the nation:

“Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.’” (Matthew 9:35 – 38)

Jesus’ Passion

As Jesus traveled throughout towns and villages He met countless expressions of human need. Perhaps you can imagine these crowds of people coming to him, looking for answers and wanting to be rescued from their plight. Rather than try to avoid these people with their overwhelming and never-ending issues, Jesus’ response is to help. Why? Because as it says above, Jesus’ response was motivated out of his compassion for the people he encountered.

Compassion means to be ‘with passion’. Jesus was deeply and passionately moved by the needs of the people around Him and this motivated him to action. Passion is about what we feel, it’s about the heart.  Ultimately Jesus’ passion came from God, his Father. He said he and the Father were one, so closely linked that what was on God’s heart was on the Son’s heart through the Holy Spirit. What broke God’s heart also broke Jesus’ heart. Jesus’ “passion” for God resulted in his “compassion” for the world and its needs.

Jesus’ Vision

As Jesus saw the problems and troubles in the world he had compassion, but then, through vision, he looks to the future. Vision is about what we see, what our eyes perceive. As Jesus looks, he says the people around him are “like sheep without a shepherd” (Mark 6:34), but he then says that the “harvest” is plentiful.

Our world today is just as full of people suffering and in need. In fact the level of need in today’s world is so overwhelming, we can become numb under its weight. But Jesus offered a way forward.  To see people as harassed and helpless is just to see the problem. Jesus was also able to see a solution. In spite of the people being harassed and helpless he lifted his eyes and said there is a potential harvest here. He saw that people are filled with potential and fruitfulness.  He sees not just what “is” but also what “could be”. Jesus wasn’t just a man of compassion and passion, he was also a man of vision, able to not just see the problems but also the potential solutions.

Jesus’ Action

In addition to being a leader with passion and vision, Jesus was also a man of action. As a result of what he felt and saw, he outlined a plan. He called people to pray for laborers to go into the harvest; he sent His own twelve disciples out as workers into the harvest. He then also went out Himself. Action is about what we do. It’s about what we put our hands to and where we direct our energies.

I believe the world today is still in desperate need of people who follow Jesus’ example - those who will grow a passion for God’s purposes, develop a vision to see how they can make a difference, and have the courage and strength to put this into action.

Does this spark something in you?

For me, the greatest need I see in the world is for good leaders.  As I have had the opportunity to travel to many parts of the world, I see the lack of good leadership and the devastating results of corruption, injustice and the repression of human flourishing that comes when bad leaders are in charge.  And I have seen places where good leadership is making an incredible positive difference. As the proverb says: “When the godly are in authority, the people rejoice. But when the wicked are in power, they groan”.  (Proverbs 29:3, New Living Translation).  

As I grow my passion for God and what He is doing in the world, he continues to grow in me a vision for leaders today that are godly and committed to the good in our world, and so my daily action is to help leaders grow to make a positive impact in the world around them.  

Questions to ponder: 

• What are you most passionate about?  Can you identify your inner drivers? Are they the right ones?  Who or what are you following?  

• Do you have a vision coming together for how things i your world could be different in the future?  What do you wake up in the middle of the night thinking about?  

• Do any immediate steps of actions spring to mind for you?  Then go ahead - make your day count!

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