Click on the links to navigate through this page. Chapter Five Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Chapter Eleven Chapter Twelve Chapter Thirteen Chapter Fourteen Chapter Fifteen Chapter Sixteen Chapter Seventeen At quick glance, it may look nice to be able to juice a passion fruit, drink it and be instantly filled with Passion...but since it doesn't work that way...why? Why hasn't God made it that simple? What would we be missing if He had done it that way? The first thing that comes to my mind, is we would miss out on the growing relationship with His Son in abiding in Him. And since Christ prayed that for us, it must mean it is very important to Him. So if we could just drink the passion juice, we would be missing out on the fellowship and experience of walking with Him. So, when we are abiding in Him, the passion should be coming from the Holy Spirit, that is where it should originate...not even in our own minds, but in the mind of the Father, conveyed to us by His Spirit! What an awesome privilege to have the Father reveal to us something of His plan!!! I like an illustration that John Piper used one time about the filling of the Holy Spirit. He likened it to a spring of water (Living Water!) He said if we are smart, we would be there at the top (in fellowship with the Father and Son) drinking, as He pours out the ever flowing water. This will refresh us, strengthen us, enable us. But what we tend to do is this: Run to the bottom of the spring with our own buckets, fill it up best we can, then trudge up the hill (in our own strength) and show the Father whatever is left, after going up the hill, and hope this pleases Him. It may sound foolish, but I think there is some truth to it. We try to please the Father much too often by doing things of our own, when He wants us to simply drink - fellowship - in His Living Water and then we can go forth into a parched land. But if we are in a parched land with half empty buckets, what good is that? I love the verse about the Holy Spirit where it says God has poured out in our hearts. (Ro. 5:5) what a neat word picture. He doesn't give it begrudgingly but lavishly pours it out. As far as spiritual gifts go, I really do think there is too much hype about them. Yes, we should know our personal strengths (I guess...but doesn't He uses our weaknesses), I like what Blackaby said about spiritual gifts...a spiritual gift is ANYTHING God calls you to do that you can not do on your own! A question I posed our group was to Give an example in your own personal life when the Holy Spirit flowed from within you to the world around you. I do recall a few times where I was talking to someone and at the same time having an argument with God. Once in particular...I was talking to my Jewish neighbor about the Lord. I was getting frustrated and said to the Lord...I will NO LONGER talk to her about Jesus...You find someone else...I'll be happy to bake her cakes, make her soup, etc. etc. as an example of Christs love, but I can no longer talk to her about Christ. As soon as I said that to God, out of my mouth He poured out some strong challenges to her! I thought where did that come from? I just told You God, I will not talk to her anymore. I guess He reminded me who will tell who what to do and what to say!! And in spite of myself, He still loves me! Amazing Love, How Can It Be? "The Living water never runs dry, but we spend most of our life parched with thirst." (pg 48) OUCH! This is so true. I know I am guilty of this. So many times I am searching for the solutions ("Gatorade") and neglect to turn to the Lord. Yet He is always there waiting to provide--waiting to put His loving arms around us. As Dr. Jeremiah continues, "...it never runs dry--which is not to say we have no responsibilities toward that reservoir." I am reminded that I need to be filled with the joy that overflows so that others may see and share that joy with me. Once again searching for solutions when all we need to do is pray and ask God to overflow us with that passion and to fill us as we dig into His Word. In answer to the question Renee' gave us to think on--Why do you think we seldom do ask God to fill us with His Spirit?-- I am not really sure. Sometimes we can get so wrapped up in life, that we neglect and grieve the Spirit.When we are doing great--we forget our Creator;when we are doing bad--we are too upset to even think of being filled with the Spirit. As for the spiritual gifts test, I myself have never taken one, and I probably won't take one. I believe as long as I am willing to do WHATEVER God calls me to do--Whenever God calls me to do it, then it doesn't matter what my "spiritual gift" is--I just need to obey. I often feel "useless" and "ungifted" in many things, but as we read in Chapter 4-- God doesn't look for perfection, rather He looks for passion. An example in my own life is public speaking--something I am DEFINITELY NOT gifted in. Actually, it scares me to death (great fear as a missionary--huh?). Am I willing? On the surface--it makes me anxious, but deep inside I am willing, and I believe God knows that and helps me through it. This brings me to the verses on page 47. The one that is most dear to me is John 14:16-17. It gives me hope in life; it gives me the peace that He is with me and will be forever ... (I just need to remind myself of this fact when I am asked to speak ) Our group was asked to think of an example in our own personal life when the Holy Spirit flowed from within us to the world around us. I thought long and hard about this--and discussed it with my husband. He said something to me that helped me "..The HS within you is demonstrated when you do and say things that are kind to people." When you show the love of Christ--the Holy Spirit is flowing from within you! I remember feeling the urge to witness to a long time friend, but found it hard to find the "right time" and whenever it came--so didn't something else--of course. One night I couldn't sleep because all I could think of was her...what if something happens to her tonight...she is so precious to me...she needs to know Jesus... Anyhow, after much prayer, I called her at 7:45 a.m. on her cell phone, as we were both driving our kids to school. I shared with her what was on my heart and told her it was important for her to listen and not think I was going insane. She laughed and when we both got home we talked. I shared the whole Gospel--w/o interruption! Then we went together to do a few things and there in the car she said, "I have NEVER heard it or understood it that way before!" The Holy Spirit spoke to her heart that day--not me-- and she accepted Jesus as her Savior! Glory to God!!! Well I had a little trouble with this chapter. I envision Dr. Jeremiah as one who springs out of bed every morning and goes at full speed all day. I truly believe that I have the Holy Spirit within me and that He will give me the passion to do what He wants me to do. But I do not jump out of bed in the morning, nor do I see myself as a passionate person. Maybe I need to re-examine the way I live and ask God for more. Page 49 says that "God pours Himself into you so that you will generously pour yourself out to others". I want to do this. Perhaps I am asking to be someone I never will be. Dr. Jeremiah also says on p. 50 that "we all carry the same miraculous living water, but we deliver it to the world in our own unique way, based on how God designed us" I am very interested to hear how the rest of you relate to the things in this chapter. Isn't it great how God made us all so different? Yet because of our differences, we make a more complete and whole body of Christ, not all just hands or feet or eyes. Blessings on you all. We have just returned from a most wonderful trip to Russia. Will be sharing more about that in church next Sunday. This was an interesting chapter. I wonder how many people wouldn’t go for passion even if you could drink it from a glass or eat it. Passion requires risk, and too many people don’t want to live life that way. I can identify with the discussion about businesses on page 44…I work for PPL, a fortune 500 company. The management is always trying to get us to be passionate about the business. It’s passion for a project that gets it done on time and under budget. I liked the analogy of the kingdom of God to a cool spring. We do take running water for granted. A few weeks ago, we were out of power for about a day. For us, being on a well, no electricity means no water! Overall, we survived pretty well, but I wouldn’t want to live like that for much more than a day! Now, I just have to get as dependent on the flow of the Holy Spirit in me, so that I remain “in the Spirit”, and not “parched with thirst” (page 48). How many times do we do something in our own strength with the goal of presenting it to the Lord when we’re done? Instead, we should come to the Lord first, to be filled with the Spirit in order to accomplish the task at hand. I took a spiritual gift analysis test years ago. I don’t remember the results of it, but I don’t think I had any great revelation from it. Now, I just pray for the Lord to show me what he wants me to do, then I go do it. The one thing to keep in mind is this: if the Lord shows you what he wants you to do, and someone else is already doing it, approach them and find out if they need help. They may be ready to go do something else, or they may be feeling over stretched and may welcome the help! Right after Bill and I were married, we were in a tiny church. There was no piano player, so I ended up playing the hymns each Sunday. I do not play piano well, and playing the hymns caused me a great deal of stress and required a great deal of practice. (I probably caused the congregation a great deal of stress too!) I found out weeks later that there was a piano player in the congregation, but she didn’t approach me about playing because I was already doing it! I would have given it up in a heartbeat! Is there something that you feel God is calling you to do? For me, I want to improve my prayer life. How ‘bout you? Hi everyone: I just read this chapter for the second time this week, and, between things in this chapter and a couple of other things that have happened lately, I feel convicted. Up to this point, I haven't had much trouble dealing with the things in this book - living with purpose, doing things "as unto the Lord", and having passion. However, this chapter brought up things far more challenging to me. As the book moves more directly to living life wide open and taking risks, etc., I find it going completely against the grain of my personality. I have a very small sense of adventure (ask my family), I don't take risks, and I prefer to be safe as much as possible. In fact, if life were a game of tag, I would always be within arm's reach of "base". I know this is wrong - after all, Jesus said "For whosoever will save his life shall lose it (Luke 9:24)". I know that many of my sins are related to this. But, still I remain the same. As the author might put it - the aqueducts are clogged! I know that Jesus is the answer to all of this, and I know I need to continue to ask the Holy Spirit to fill me and change me. I just wish He'd do it quickly because I'm not much use like this. Page 45 - God desires to flood the world with himself through us. Wow, I am challenged to think about what am I doing right now that shows His love, I seem to be so focused on the future. page 49 - I do at times pour myself out for others, at times I have no emotional, spiritual or physical strength to. "Dear Lord, cleanse me from my selfishness." Hi girls, Hope you are having a good week of passion. I like what A.T. Pierson said on page 51 Everyone has a gift, therefore all should be encouraged. No one has all the gifts, therefore all should be humble. All the gifts are for one body, therefore all should be harmonious. All the gifts are needful, therefore all should be faithful. I think as a group of Christians we should know what our gifts are and then we should learn how to use those gifts in harmony with other Christians to accomplish something or anything for Christ. I really think we often try to do to much on our own, because we are afraid to ask for help, or we don't want someone else to steal our glory. I think we sometimes forget we are all working for the same goal. I am fairly new at the church, but I hope as time goes on I will be able to put my talents to use to better serve God thru the church. Just to remind all of you, if any of you are interested. The Christmas shoebox drive for children overseas is going on again this year. The information is at the church, by the front and back doors. If you have a shoebox and a little time, fill one for a child and bring it to the church. You will bring a smile to a child's face and a joy to your heart. Giving to others is the best way to show God's love. Have a wonderful weekend. Waiting to hear from all of you about chapter 6 I could totally identify with just wanting to drink some passion juice & be done with it! I'd like to do that in a few other areas of life, too! To answer Renee's questions: 1. pg. 47, Which verses on the HS are most dear to you? I think Romans 5:5 - we HAVE the HS right now already - He's not missing from the lives of believers. 2. pg. 48, Why do you think we seldom ask God to fill us with the HS? Well, personally I think it is because we are Baptists & not Pentecostals!! I think I mentioned before that I am now attending a Pentecostal church. First of all, they equate being filled with the HS as speaking in tongues, and I would have to totally disagree with that definition. But aside from that, they talk about the HS alot more than Baptists do & really earnestly seek to be "touched." Now, when they start going in the tongues thing, I think they really are touched, but in a different way! At least they don't do it too often. 3. pg 49 - Give an example in your own life when the HS flowed from witin you to the world around you. uuuummmmm . . . . . . Another thing that struck me was pg. 45 when he talked about enthusiasm = God within us. Hmm, better work more on practising the presence of God in my life! Then chapter 5, one of the questions posed to our group: Why do we seldom ask God to fill us with His Spirit? OK, I'm sorta like my car. I fill it up with gas, and can go 370 to 400 miles. (small cars are a great thing). Then keeping my eye out for the best deal on the ever-changing gas prices, I know it's soon time to fill up again, but also know I have 2 gallons left once that warning light goes on. The similarity in being Spirit-filled is this: I know I have "received the Spirit who is from God and might know the things freely given to us by God." (I Cor. 2:12) Full tank right? And I know the Spirit is always in me, but what I tend to forget is I am not always in the Spirit. What a good reminder on p. 48 to us, that all we need to do is ask God to flood our hearts with the Holy Spirit, daily! I think in life, I tend to be like my gas tank, knowing even though I'm low and that pump light is on, I can still get by because there are a few gallons left. Instead of "running on fumes" I want to pray as Dr. Jeremiah suggests, daily, "Dear Lord, I invite You to fill me with Your Spirit today, so I may live in the fullness of the power and passion You provide." Amen. I heard the lyrics from one of Mercy Me's new songs on the radio, and the beginning went something like, "how can I further Your Kingdom, when I'm so wrapped up in mine?" I think the song is called "Blink of an Eye". The idea is that we're only on this earth for a very brief time, and we need to make the most of it, every moment. There's a reason that I'm alive, for the blink of an eye. So let's not waste our opportunities, but be ready for them, and Spirit-filled. Chapter Six Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Chapter Eleven Chapter Twelve Chapter Thirteen Chapter Fourteen Chapter Fifteen Chapter Sixteen Chapter Seventeen Hi Ladies. Paul serves as a pattern for passion. Paul serves as a pattern for me! When I wrote that, well, I thought, that's a scary thought! We know that Paul was really sold-out for God. That is a big step of faith for me, but I do want to be sold-out for God, giving everything I am and have back to Him. Sometimes it is easier said than done. A little thing pops up and we ignore the Holy Spirit's promptings to speak or help, and boom, there we are on the bottom rung of the ladder again. So my goal for this week is to be more aware of the Spirit's voice in my ear, leading me where I wouldn't go on my own, but will do it for the Lord. Page 58 Paul did not leave the development of godly character to chance. Sometimes I just wish I were more loving, kind, patient, etc. But Paul had to work at it, and I must consciously work at it too, yet "relying on the work of the indwellling Holy Spirit to help us become a person of righteousness and integrity who reflects Christ". Praying for a good week for you all, as you pursue a life wide open. Hello Ladies! I hope you're enjoying the book so far. I know I am. This book is a challenge to me. “The life of passion for the Christian begins with total surrender to the lordship of Jesus Christ.” (page 56) We accepted Christ’s salvation, but have we totally surrendered to His lordship? For me, this is a daily struggle. I am encouraged, however, by what Christ says in Luke 9:23: “And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.” This is something we must do daily. I like the picture of a fork in the road – The main fork in my life was at salvation. But there are constant choices to make: do I depend on God’s power, or my own? Do I take credit for something that I did, or do I give God the glory, because it was His power that accomplished it through me? David Jeremiah’s question, “What else can be more important than sharing the Good News with others?” ( Page 60) really hit home. This is where I fall short. I am not bold about sharing the Gospel. I need to be able to depend on God’s power and grace to reach out to the unsaved. I can’t live life “wide open” without total dependence on the Holy Spirit. My prayer each day is for God to fill me with the Holy Spirit. The question remains, will I learn to live totally dependent on the Holy Spirit? Will you? What a POWERFUL chapter--filled with great examples!!!! As I read through this chapter, I kept asking myself, "Am I that passionate; that willing?" Am I willing to give all (Luke 14:26-27 -- 26 "If you want to be my follower you must love me more than your own father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, more than your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. 27 And you cannot be my disciple if you do not carry your own cross and follow me.") Joseph in Michael Card's story certainly was a true disciple of Jesus!!! Dr. Jeremiah was not exaggerating when he said, "one moment can change more than your life; it can change your eternity" pg 53 Every choice--every decision--every step matters! Isn't it true that we all shrink back sometimes and are not "voluntary" "unreservedly presenting ourselves? Pg 56, 57 Maybe that is where the passion gets lost. Our group was asked..."Have you ever come to a fork in the road in your life? What were the choices, what did you choose and what was the outcome?" In my life, the biggest "fork" was for both my husband and I. As we were both burdened for unreached people and seeking what the Lord's will was for our future, we were about to answer "where does the Lord want us to go?" Kenya was on our hearts, but as we wanted to look at all doors around us.We felt called to a city so we were considering starting a church in the Boston area. Then the Ralph came across the verse in the Bible to stick with the calling, which you have been called. Therefore, we knew that the choice was to be made to go to Kenya. It is funny that Dr. Jeremiah mentions Acts 26:18 in this chapter--that is our vision--our passion, and that is why we God has led us to Mombasa, Kenya-- a city that is so blinded from the truth. We are thankful that we answered the call of the Lord and moved with our children to this place in order to bring the light of Christ. It isn't an easy journey, but we know that the Lord is always with us. REALLY liked this chapter. As I may have mentioned before, I read this book back in the summer, upon Heather's recommendation. The first few chapters I remember thinking...this just sounds like pop psychology, Christian style. I was not all that impressed, but as I continued reading it, I liked it more and more. I think from this chapter on out, I really agree whole heartedly with the author. The climax, the head on the nail, the bottom line, the whatever is..."WHERE IS YOUR PASSION FOR THE LOST?" WHAT ELSE CAN BE MORE IMPORTANT THAN SHARING THE GOOD NEWS WITH OTHERS? Think about it, what could possibly be more important? Why would God save us and then leave us here on earth? Why doesn't He take us with Him immediately? SO WE CAN TESTIFY TO OTHERS WHAT HE HAS DONE FOR US!! I mean, isn't that how a lot of us were saved? Because someone else testified to us what Christ had done for them! Isn't that what he is saying on pg. 61..."God came into the darkness at a great price, the price of His only Son - to rescue us and bring us back into His arms. NOW HE GIVES US THE SAME TASK." "Personally, I can not imagine anyone who fully understands what Christ has done yet doesn't have a powerful passion to pass on that gift to others." To be honest with you, I have lived most of my Christian life, to my shame as that. NOT having a powerful passion to pass on that gift to others." But all praise to Him, He has seemed to stir this desire up in me. How shamefully I fall short of being a witness for Him, but one thing is different...this is my passion now. How I long to see others come to Christ. I have had at times, become so consumed with it, for the salvation of particular people in my life, that I have asked Jesus to carry this burden for me, for I can no longer carrying it myself. I have come short, only because I believe it is a sin...to ask God to REMOVE my compassion for certain lost people. But I do believe that He has placed individual people into our lives to testify of Chirst's salvation , so I do believe it would be a sin to ask it be removed, if the Holy Spirit has placed it there. I do confess though, that I have told the Lord, that I have washed my hands clean of some people, but He doesn't seem to take my answer as much of an authoritative voice (should I be surprised?) As of late, I have seemed to have distanced myself from the lost state of some people I have been praying for. And yet...just the other day, while sitting at someone's house, petting their dog, like a wave, that burden washed over me again, and brought me to tears. Where does this come from and why? And even more importantly, why do I have such a burden and yet see no fruit, no working in these people's lives of the Holy Spirit? Well, I didn't mean to go on, but this certainly is a heavy passion in my life...to see sinners come to Christ. Oh, if only the Lord of the Harvest would bring in a harvest!! Our group has pondered what 'fork in the road' have we faced, what was it, what was our response, and what was the outcome. Of course, the biggest fork was the day of my salvation, where I walked into a Christians house, as a dead, clueless sinner and left a few hours later a new creation!! But we face forks sometimes daily, whether we know it or not. Just the other day, though it seems like a little fork, I was writing a note to someone who I was watching their dog. This persons husband has been on the brink of death for at least 9 months. I will probably not see her again, but as I was writing one more note to her before leaving for the final time....the Spirit nudged me to write that I would pray for his healing and restoration of health. My first thought was "nah, what difference does it make if I write this or not, I will probably never see her again. So there was a fork before me, but I decided, if I was prompted to write it, so that is what God wanted me to do...it is up to Him to work through this woman, not I. I just had to write the note> so that was the fork, though it seems awfully small and irrelevant, I did write that at the end of my note. Yes, a small fork, but shame on me, when I choose even the wrong small roads to take the forks on the small roads! Wow!! What a challenge! Evangelizing in high school & college (CEF, SS teacher, AWANA, street evangelism, etc) are not good enough to last my whole lifetime! I need to do more - evangelism has to be continuous throughout life. Gotta work on that one, for sure! We were asked if we had ever come to a fork in the road, what the choices were & what we chose. I think there are lots of forks in the road of life and we make choices every day. Of course, I'm sure she meant slightly bigger forks :-). Anyway, stuff like college, jobs, marriage, how many kids, moving ,etc. make more of an impact and have put me where I am today. Also, I have made some not so good choices without even realizing that I was at a fork in the road. The results were disasterous and have certainly made me more aware of the choices I make. I can't help but feel down after reading that chapter. Those wonderful examples of people who have passionately shared the gospel throughout their lives are meant to be inspiring, but they make me want to give up. I am ashamed to say it, but my life is a huge contrast to those examples. Then there is the following quote from Dr. Jeremiah, "Personally, I cannot imagine anyone who fully understands what Christ has done yet doesn't have a powerful passion to pass on that gift to others." I agree with the quote, but I am not living it out. The only thing I can do is throw myself at the mercy of Jesus and ask for the Holy Spirit to help me. Clinging to the cross, Linda thank you for the testimony, it surely encouraged me! A Fork in the road. Every decision we make daily leads us closer to our Savior and His will for us or away from Him. I wish I could remember that in the little things in life. On page 58 the author stated about Paul " He gave the Lord everything he was and everything he had - his life and breath; his past, present, and future; his hopes and dreams; his passion for living." That is my hearts desire. And God knows my heart better than I. I truly have nothing without Him, and I know life is not worth living unless it is sold out for Him and His plan for me. I think the more I carry out His plan the more passion I get for it because it energizes and encourages me. It' not easy though. It's a hard road. Good things don't come easy. On page 63 it says "passion is not cheap. But it is real; it is priceless. It does cost your life, but it will save your soul." Nicely said. The book has inspired me by the idea of being at a fork in the road as that is where we are in our ministry career. It's good to be reminded to look forward to what is ahead and not behind, to realize that my choices today bring results in the future. It's a difficult time but God has brought us to it and I need to trust Him to bring us through it. I think the statement " you die to live, become a slave to be free, and give away the world in order to gain your soul " is intriguing. Imagine what could be accomplished for God if we truly and permanently gave our all to Him. Chapter Seven Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Chapter Eleven Chapter Twelve Chapter Thirteen Chapter Fourteen Chapter Fifteen Chapter Sixteen Chapter Seventeen Chapter 7 – Fire in Your Bones…I’ve been trying to think of a time in my life that would correlate to what he’s writing about in this chapter. I’ve had things that I’ve felt led to do, but they certainly didn’t lead to life threatening situations. I think the closest thing in my life that fits this is the decision Bill and I made to home school our daughters. This was something we felt strongly led to do. Although we knew some home schoolers, none of our friends at the time home schooled. We faced opposition from both sets of parents, especially my Mom, who was a public school teacher. The first couple of years were rough, we had to make the transition from public school to home school. Over the years, we’ve had our difficulties, and there were certainly opportunity costs involved. I’m glad that God gave us the opportunity to home school over the past 13 years, and, Lord willing, we’ll be able to take Emily through her high school years, like we did with Greta and Sarah. I would say that for the past 10 years, we’ve been at the point where we can’t not home school. Are we passionate about home schooling? Yes. Do we get frustrated sometimes? Certainly. I disagree with Dr. Jeremiah’s statement on page 73: “Whenever you say, ‘I can’t not do this,’ you are admitting that your desires go beyond reason and logic.” While that may be true some times, I think that in my case stated above, home schooling does not go beyond reason and logic. To do something that is difficult, and time consuming, but with a positive outcome, is not unreasonable or illogical. I think that any time we are doing things for God, the world may see what we do as unreasonable, but God does not. 1 Corinthians 3:19 says “For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God.” What do you think of this chapter? I guess I've had some things where I felt "I can't not do this." I can think of a couple of ministry opportunities at church where I felt there was a definite need for something to be done, and God pointed out to me that I was able, through His Spirit, and available to do the needed task. However, I'm not the type of person to get "all fired up" and excited about much of anything, so I guess I would describe my doing these things as doing them out of conviction as mentioned on page 71. I'm so glad God gave us the example of Jeremiah. He was so obedient to God's call on his life, yet he was not always exuberant about the tasks God gave him and sometimes did express that "I don't need this headache" attitude David Jeremiah wrote about. Although I have never done such self-sacrificing things as that prophet did, I can certainly relate to that attitude when those things God has called me to become difficult or maybe tiresome. I am really enjoying this book. Wow!! What a chapter, I think this is the best chapter so far for me! At the bottom of page 66 where it says "I can't not do this.".....It might appear to the world that we are making a choice, but we've known from the beginning we had only one option. Why would any of us feel that way about a particular cause unless God instilled those feelings in us?" That is totally what I have been saying! Going to Senegal, West Africa is something I HAVE to do. I have heard from family members, saved friends, and unsaved friends: "Wow, you are brave, I couldn't do that." "Are you sure this is what you want for your life?" "How are you going to adjust, it's so different form America?" " You mean your going to sell all you stuff?" I am telling you,people say the funniest things! My husband I feel called to go, just as powerful as others feel called to stay. We "can't not do it"  that would be disobedience. Will it be hard? Yes. Will it be unsafe? Sure. Will we miss our family? Of course. Will we wish we were back in the states? Definitely. BUT, God will give us the ability to carry out this passion. The other statement that I can identify with is on page 67. It says: "Passionate people are heartfelt people, filled with both joy and sorrow." Yes there is so much joy, undescribable peace and joy with being sold out for Him in his perfect will, yet there is sorrow, BUT I wouldn't change it for anything in the whole wide world!! God is Good all the time, all the time, God is good! I was really stirred when I read this chapter. I prayed that my passion for God is what "I can't not do", what ever it is that I am doing for Him at any given time. Another thing that Dr. Jeremiah said a couple of times is "The passion was ultimately for God Himself". No works of ours, not even a desire for others to come to know God, are as important as our passion for God Himself. I have recently read a couple of books that emphasize that. It's not something that I have always known, but pray that from now on that will be true in my life. I want my love for God to be the motivator for all my actions. Of course I identified with Dr. Jeremiah's struggle as he moved out of his comfortable life in NJ into "trusting God in an unfamiliar setting". We have done that numerous times, as we've moved around the country. And out of the country, to Russia, for example  :)   It is not always easy, but I can say from experience that God has certainly blessed our obedience as we follow His leading. Praying that God is blessing you, as you seek to follow Him and make Him your passion in life. The part I liked best about this chapter was the quote at the end, "Passionate, visionary people spend their lives walking away from the easy route." It reminds me that its relatively easy to be a Christian in the U.S., but it really isn't easy to be an on-fire passionate Christian anywhere. Passionate people tend to draw attention, and I hope God gives me the courage to be passionate about Him, His word, and His truth no matter where I am. Some thoughts, as we read and respond back to the chapter Fire in Your Bones... 1.)   Think of a time that you attempted to resist God's prodding, prompting. Did God persist, or did you get your way, and suppress the Almighty? I got my own way for a time. What are the consequences of resisting God's prompting? VERY BAD!!! Almost destroyed my life!! 2.)  Have you ever wished God's desire for our lives be one of simple comfort and no waves being made by Him in our lives or by us? yes!! Guess I am admitting to a lazy streak here. 3.)   Though the 'age' of retirement is closer for some than others, have you ever thought of retirement? Not really, but my hubby can't wait! What is your desire, for your life, as you get older and closer to seeing Christ face to face? ummm . . . I really try not to think about getting older. Being a good Calvinist, I think it's not necessarily getting older that makes a person any closer to seeing Christ - it will happen when it's predestined to happen for each of us. 4.)   The author gave a list of 4 what he calls truths of Jeremiah...is there any within the list that you desire to comment on? #3 - God warned Jeremiah that there would be obstacles. Interesting thought that what we're passionate about isn't easy - the mundane things don't require passion. I haven't met anyone yet who is passionate about cleaning toilets & dirty dishes!! Yes, there are people who like to have a clean house, but that's slightly different than being passionate about the actual chores themselves, I think. pg. 73 - "Passion is not about logic!" That about sums up the chapter, I think. I thought this was yet another excellent chapter. I really like the thought provoking statement...'I CAN'T NOT DO THIS" What a way to sum up the prophet Jeremiah. He tried so hard to NOT proclaim God's word, yet in spite of his weariness in the flesh...he could not do anything otherwise but proclaim it! THIS certainly is evidence of the True Living God within himself...may by God's grace, be the same in us! I am certainly NOT a risk taker, but I have in a very small way, felt at times the desire to resist not necessarily a message from God, but a burden given to me by God. Mainly praying for someone who God has laid on my heart. There have been times, even very recently, where I have told God...NO MORE! I am totally free of this burden, I am done, God, done! But as one of the questions asked...I was unable to surpress the prodding of Almighty God - - did I really think I could? Yes, I have desired to live a simple, comfortable lifestyle...in fact, being raised in that manner, have thought for many years, this to be honorable! Sometimes I think this is why God will not allow me to be engulfed in doing artwork, it would be sooooo comfortable, sooo simple and soooo non threatening...but no, He says...lets try this instead! I have most certainly seen the grace of God in my life, by His prodding me, that as He has slowly been weaning me off of a desire to just simply fit in, I do long, the closer I get to the day when I see Christ, to be busy about my Fathers business until the day that He may hopefully say Well done, faithful servant! What a blessing that will be to hear our Heavenly Father say that!! Of the four truths about Jeremiah....#2...All praise to Him...who will persist, even inspite of our resistance. A sentence under this truth..."But God will never give you a job without the skills."...to add to all those good thoughts...this weekend, traveling with some friends, we came across a sign that read.."God doesn't call the qualified...He qualifies the called!" I thought that was excellent and ties in with Dr. Jeremiah's thoughts, too. I could go on and on....thought this was an excellent chapter. Looking forward to hearing from the others! Sorry I am so late in getting Chapter 7 to you, it has just been one of those weeks. I can't not do this - pg 66 I felt that way each time I brought in one of my 3 stray cats. I already had 3 cats and was not looking for anymore, but each of the strays would have died if I had not brought them in. I felt there was nothing else I could do. Each time my mother said " You are not going to keep another cat " and I just knew I was. I could not watch them die, so what choice did I have. They are the nicest cats and I do not regret the money I spent or the time I had to give to taming them. God gifted me with a talent to get wild animals to trust me and even though it is sometimes a very frustrating task, I can't not save their lives. Who needs this - pg. 70 How many times have I thought that. To many to count. Getting saved did not stop the thought or the problem that caused it, but it did give me a different way of dealing with it. Before I was saved I would get angry and stay that way for days, complaining and grumbling to every one. Now I just deal with it by thinking of how to fix it, the grumbling and complaining just wasted time that is now better spent looking for a solution. I cannot say I don't get frustrated, I am human, but God has given me the peace to know that he has the answers, if I just take the time to ask him. And when I forget that and complain to my Christian friends they remind me to remember that God is there waiting for me to take it to him. Vince Lombardi said " I have discovered that there is more challenge in building than in maintaining " - pg 75 I totally agree with this. I love to remodel and decorate a room in my house. But as I expressed before I have no desire to clean. For me the fun is in the creation, not the maintenance. Luckily I have been reading this book and I want to say that I house cleaned my living room and for the 1st time in my life I enjoyed it. I had a purpose. God gave me my living room and all the things in it and he wants me to take care of what he has given me. So I did and it looks really nice and I am now on to the next room. I know God wants more from me than a clean room, a healthy cat and a better attitude dealing with life's problems. I know there are things he wants me to do for him that I don't even know about yet. But I feel he uses all the things he teaches me in small ways to develope my character so I will be able to do the bigger things for him. My walk with God has been a real learning experience so far and my hope is that I will keep learning and be faithful to him whenever he calls on me to do something. I hope I will get Chapter 8 to you sooner than I did this one. God bless you all It is an awesome thought that God knew the plans He had for us before creation. That He has a specific job for us and gave us the skills and desires to fulfill that job. The frightening thought is that there is greater opposition when we live passionately for the Lord. That fear is sin because He is with us always and every breath we take is from Him. Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Chapter Eleven Chapter Twelve Chapter Thirteen Chapter Fourteen Chapter Fifteen Chapter Sixteen Chapter Seventeen