Hope for the Girl Pursuing Her Passion {Part 2}
Last week I began a 2-part series to offer hope to the girl pursuing her passion. If you haven’t read that yet, you will want to start there first! You can do that by clicking here!
“A passionate follower of Jesus choosing to live in alignment with the God of the Universe – willing to speak the Gospel and compel those in their path to take a chance on Jesus. That is a terrifying situation for the enemy.”
Friends, pursuing our passion is powerful when we live in the sweet spot of where His calling and our passion meet. It’s because of that power, the enemy finds it terrifying.
So he plots and he plans. He uses old tricks because he’s not very creative. He sticks to lies mostly and uses even those we thought would be our advocates.
And it hurts. It hurts and it feels as though the current pushes against us.
So what we do when it hurts?
I left you with the first and most important powerful weapon we can use against the enemy’s attacks. God’s Word. Truth.
Now I’ll leave you with 3 more powerful weapons to help you hold onto hope!
1. We plant ourselves on the only truth. The Word of God. (find the explanation and Scripture for each of these in Part 1)
?If this is a good work God began, He will continue and finish it.
?We make a difference when we follow His call.
?There is great joy in living out the combination of a passion, calling, and gifting.
?God has uniquely gifted us to do His work here on Earth.
?The support of another is not what I am aiming for. It is the approval of Christ.
2. We intentionally self-check keeping our mindset and actions in alignment with God’s directives.
Balance is difficult. When we are passionate about something, we are drawn into it and the potential to losing ourselves within it is great. The temptation is real and fierce. But when we look up and realign, we can fight temptation and not leave no footholds for the enemy.
?Priorities
God, family, and work. In that order. When we change that order, a sense of imbalance settles into our lives.
If we break down our priorities even more, I think we can do an even better job of keeping ourselves in alignment. I like how Michael Hyatt breaks his priorities down into six groups. Self is just under God. If at first look, it appears a bit selfish, take a moment to think about this. On an airplane we are instructed to place the gas mask on ourselves before placing one on our children. The truth is that if we don’t take care of ourselves, we will do a pretty lousy job of caring for others! You can check out his post here!
?Embracing and letting go.
Sometimes we have to let go of one thing to embrace another. We have a capability to stretch in certain seasons, however, if stretched too thin, we will break.
?Our one and only idol.
Our passions have the potential to become our idol. Is our success or lack of success defining our worth? Has it become a platform on which we crown ourselves rather than God? If so, a realignment is necessary.
?The Will of God
Our work must reflect the will of God and be in alignment with the Word of God. Are there any parts of our efforts contradicting either of those statements? Is there a spiritual “sensing” or holy urging to stop? If so, stop. Readjust and get back in alignment.
3. We replace defeating self-talk with victorious truth
Our passions do matter. They make a difference.
Our contributions are unique and not comparable to the contributions of another. Comparison is a trap we can easily fall into. But, our gifting gives us a purpose and a means to point to the Savior. Not the means to replicate another’s way of pointing to Him.
Our gifting gives us a purpose and a means to point to the Savior. #hope #momentsofhope #passion #4tips Share on X
Living our passion is living vulnerably because what we are doing matters to the core of our being. And living vulnerably often leads to pain. A pain that is definitely worth it, but one we must never allow the enemy to fertilize.
AndWhen the defeating self-talk says,
“I’m not capable.”
“Someone else is better at this.”
“I don’t have enough time.”
“I don’t have the correct education or experience.”
We replace it with the victorious truth that says, “I am capable because God equips me to do His will.”
Now may the God of peace — who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep, and ratified an eternal covenant with his blood—may he equip you with all you need for doing his will. May he produce in you, through the power of Jesus Christ, every good thing that is pleasing to him. All glory to him forever and ever! Amen. –Hebrews 13:20-21 NLT
Friends, when we find our sweet spot of passion and call, God equips. He prepares us in every possible way.
4. We pray
Boldly. Consistently. With praise, thanksgiving. and faith.
We believe in and praise God in advance for the good work He will do. We pray the scriptures to keep us in alignment with His will. And we do not make our requests in timidity, but rather with bold and audacious faith!
If you are the girl pursuing her passion, but in need of hope, I pray you turn to the Truth Jesus offers. I pray you feel holy confidence to step out in faith, setting fear aside. You may have heard the phrase, “Do it afraid.” Yes, friends, if need be, do it afraid. But more than that, I pray you receive the courage to do it unafraid. Because when God is for you, who can be against you?
And who would dare tangle with God by messing with one of God’s chosen? Who would dare even to point a finger? The One who died for us—who was raised to life for us!—is in the presence of God at this very moment sticking up for us. –Romans 8:32-33 MSG
So have hope, sweet friend. Stand tall. Stand strong. Pursue your passion.
And do great big things for the Kingdom of God!
I love that your #1 is planting yourself in the truth! That is the MOST IMPORTANT step!!! 🙂 Thanks for this encouragement, dear friend.
Amen, Lauren! That Truth is our anchor, isn’t it! Thank you so much for the sweet visit!
Hugs,
Lori
I love how you said “what we are doing matters to the core of our being.” We have to remember that when Satan starts whispering those lies.
He is so good at whispering those lies, but he’s not very creative. We just need to recognize his go-to list of lies and refute them one by one! Thanks, Debbie, for stopping by and joining me!
Love,
Lori
oh my goodness as a girl living my passion this is so so good and so encouraging. I am about to hit my busy fall season living my passion through my ministry coming alive ministries, so this post was so incredibly encouraging. Thank you for these beautiful reminders. So glad I stopped by!
Hi Jennifer,
I’m cheering you on and saying an extra prayer as you jump into that busy season!
Blessings and smiles,
Lori
Lori, this is so good! Our self-talk is such a key way the enemy attacks to hinder us from believing the passion God planted in our hearts is really for us. How many times we need this encouragement and wisdom to discern and move forward with our giftings. “Do it afraid”…Yes!
Let’s do it afraid together, friend! Hugs!!!
Hey Lori, great post! I totally see how sometimes people think that spending time praying for yourself or taking care of your self is selfish. But it’s the opposite! There have been months where God has just led me to be with HIm in prayer and HIs word, and not pray interceed for other things. I asked HIm once if this was right and He answered me so clearly that He can take care of the worlds needs without my prayers, but He wants me to heed HIs Voice and listen for HIs will. I actually know now that God is bringing healing and wholeness to my heart when I am in those places of self care. Its a regular part of my relationship with HIm now. We need to allow our prayers not to fit in to a mold or it becomes sticky! Of course this is my experience :))) Hope you have a blessed week Aliyah
Aliyah,
I love this testimony of yours! It’s beautiful! “I actually know now that God is bringing healing and wholeness to my heart when I am in those places of self care.” – I love that you were so tuned in with the Spirit of God that you heard His call to quiet and prayer. And then that you were obedient to that call. Thank you so much for blessing me today!
Beautiful, Lori.
You make it easier for people pursuing their passion with these guides.
Thanks, Lux!
Yup, I really needed this admonition to quit the self-defeating self-talk. Trusting for grace to let “the words of my mouth . . . be acceptable in {His} sight” today.
Thanks, Lori!
Michele, I’m coming alongside you and praying against that self-defeating talk! I’m praying you replace every lie whispered by the enemy with the Truth of God!
Hugs,
Lori
So, SO good! Thanks for sharing these practical ways to pursue our passions relentlessly! I’ve seen first hand how the enemy steps up his attacks as I step out in faith. I’ll be using lots of these tips in the near future, I’m sure of it! Blessings!
I’m so glad I could encourage you and point you to weapons of truth against the enemy! Praying for you – that as you step out in faith, God wraps you tightly in His hedge of protection. A protection that doesn’t allow even a single arrow to penetrate your soul! Thanks, Liz, for visiting today!
Blessings and smiles,
Lori
I love this Lori! It’s so true that it’s easy to know our passion and then take off pursuing it on our own. Thanks for this great reminder to stay in God’s will and on His timeline. Wow, that’s not easy but by grace alone. Amen!!
His timeline is the best one, but it sure does take an intentional thought process to rest in it! Thanks, friend, for visiting today!
Hugs,
Lori
What a sweet and encouraging word today, Lori!
I love how practical this one is!
Thank you for encouraging me and so many others to keep on pursuing our passions!
Sure am blessed by you~
Thank you, Melanie! I’m so glad you visited today. Thank you for your kind words!
Hugs,
Lori
Lori, I think our posts today run along similar veins. Our hope is in God so we don’t have to be afraid to share our words and other talents. We don’t have to be afraid to be vulnerable because He is always with us and will use our talents for His glory. Blessings! I’m your neighbor today at #IntentionalTuesday.
I can’t wait to check out your post, Gayl!
Living our passion is living vulnerably! I love that, Lori. It’s so worth it….pursuing your passion….but that doesn’t mean it is easy. Thanks for the encouragement today.
I’m so glad you were encouraged by your visit, Sarah! It is worth it, isn’t it!
Blessings and smiles,
Lori
Beautifully written and I could so relate! You articulated how many of us feel.
Thank you for your kind words, Gretchen! Thank you for visiting today!
Hi Lori,
After reading this, I am encouraged to keep pursuing my passion and calling! Thank you!
Blessings,
Julie
Oh, Julie! I am so thankful God used these words to encourage you to keep going! I love it! I’m saying a prayer for you continued inspiration right now!
I have been learning these very things for myself lately. It is so good to know I am not alone. Everything changed for me when I realized the enemy wouldn’t be fighting so hard if I wasn’t doing exactly what God wanted. It was like a sign I was on the right track and motivated me to keep pushing forward.