Purpose and Passion
I don’t know about you but I’ve been seeing these words float around a lot more lately than ever before. Maybe it’s because my passion is to help other woman entrepreneurs rediscover their purpose!
I’ve had 4 people in the last week come to me and ask for prayer because they don’t know what their purpose is anymore and they need/want direction.
Have you ever read or heard the following quote?
“If you can’t figure out your purpose, figure out your passion. For your passion will lead you right into your purpose.”
Well, in prayer the other day, God revealed to me how so many times we seem to put the cart before the horse when it comes to passion and purpose. We think that just because we are passionate about something that our purpose must be tied up to that passion.
The other day I was listening to a John C Maxwell video and he made a great point about having a passion but it not being your purpose. All he had to do was mention American Idol auditions and I knew where he was going.
So many people come to those auditions with a passion for singing. They truly believe they sound good and when they open their mouths to sing it sounds like nails on a chalkboard.
They have passion…they love to sing…they thought they were good at it…but they found out very quickly that singing was not their purpose in life. Not saying that music in some capacity isn’t their purpose but singing, was not.
During that same prayer time, the Lord led me to look up the definitions of passion and purpose. I thought I knew what they meant but I love to look deeper into the meanings of words. They seem to come to life and the picture gets so much clearer.
Purpose – the goal that someone wants to achieve, or that something is intended to achieve; an anticipated outcome that is intended or that guides your planned actions
Let’s think about this for a second.
A purpose is intentional and intentional means something done on purpose. Read that again, but slower!
Pretty deep, right?
Passion – a strong and barely controllable emotion; intense desire or enthusiasm for something
Isn’t it interesting that passion has everything to do with our emotions yet purpose is all about being intentional?
How many times have you allowed your emotions to control you? I know most of my life my emotions have controlled me. They have controlled how I reacted to certain situations and circumstance, how I measured loved, how I felt on any given day.
You have to admit, emotions change like the wind and when you put them in front of your purpose there is no telling where you will end up.
The quote that sums up purpose before passion is
“Knowing your purpose motivates your life. Purpose always produces passion” – Rick Warren
I do believe that when you have a passion for something that it will lead to your purpose.
What are your thoughts on this? Do you believe that your passion leads to your purpose?
Y’all Be Blessed,
Audrey
