Something about Passion
May 20th, 2009 by ljkim
I think people are made to be passionate, ardent, devoted admirers and fans of something or other… We never feel as alive as the moment in which we are 110% passionate about something. I think you see evidence of this in what we gravitate toward: whether it’s how crazy people get about sporting events, rock concerts, dance or music, or even falling in love or sex…what these all have in common is that they are often opportunities to lose oneself in ardent devotion to something outside oneself. At that moment something inside you says “Yes. This is what it’s all about.”
The problem is just about anything anyone can become passionate about can look silly in the light of day. Ardent devotees to anything: those people who paint their bodies for a sports team, trekkies, hippies, slaves to fashion…that annoying co-worker who’s so in-love with a rather boring person.
No wonder the mark of sophistication is to be able to experience amazing things all the while seeming bored. The rational brain says “it’s just a stupid game,” “it’s just a lame song,” “he/she is just like all the rest,” and it’s partially correct…the things we are passionate about do kind of look silly over time. That’s our problem, we’re made for passion, but nothing is wholly worth our daily ardent passionate devotion…except Him.
For those who know, God is actually worth our daily ardent passionate devotion, He is worth waiting overnight in the cold to meet, He is worth every bit of our mental energy and joy, and He’s worth making a fool of oneself for. And the fun thing is once you have that, it frees you to be an ardent fan of other things too… You can play-adulate that team that no one thought could win, you can dance as if no one’s looking and sing as if no one can hear you – even if it’s nothing to crow about – because you have something that’s really worth all that and more.
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