Dear Friends,
I was interested to learn that a week after Tom Brady notified the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers that he was retiring, he spoke again in such a way that he
appeared to leave the door a crack open for a possible future return to the
playing field. Brady has a passion for the game, and it is just too hard to say
goodbye to something you are passionate about.
I believe passion is the key to success, whether on or off the
football field. Passionate people are generally successful people, whatever
their walk in life may be. Brady possessed this quality, and because he
did, he will probably go down as the greatest quarterback in N.F.L. history.
One of my favorite movies from years past was “Zorba the Greek.”
Zorba was the epitome of passion. He lived his life with reckless abandon. His
style of life was contagious.
Author and speaker, Tim Hansel writes about him: “His zest for
life at its fullest, his amazing way of flowing with life and pain inspired his
employer, whom he called ‘Boss,’ to say to him, ‘Zorba, teach me to
dance. Zorba had an incredible appetite for life and grace. I
found that infectious. As Zorba said so well: ‘The life of a man is a road with
steep rises and dips. All sensible people use their brakes. But I did away with
my brakes altogether a long time ago because I'm not at all scared of a jolt…What
have I got to lose? Nothing. Even if I do take it easy, won't I end up
the same? Of course, I will. So, let's scorch along.’” Holy Sweat, Tim
Hansel, p. 82
As a former coach, I always looked for passion in my players. If
they possessed a passion for the game, no matter how limited their skills might
have been, I knew they would eventually be successful because of their great
passion to improve and be their very best.
Author and speaker, Tony Campolo says, “Until I am committed,
there is a hesitancy, a chance to draw back. But the moment I definitely commit
myself, then God moves also, and a whole stream of events begins to erupt. All
manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings, persons, and material assistance that
I could have never dreamed of come my way and begin to flow toward me the
moment I made a commitment.” Quoted from a John Maxwell podcast, “The Leaders
Greatest Gift.”
Paul exhorts the Colossians to be passionate about what they do.
“Whatever you do, do it heartedly, as to the Lord and not to men” (Colossians
3:23). In Ecclesiastes we read, “Whatsoever your hand finds to do, do it
with all you might” (Ecclesiastes 9:10). Why did the workers in Nehemiah’s day
complete the walls around Jerusalem in just 52 days? It was because, “The
people had a mind to work” (Nehemiah 4: 6). They were passionate, full of
enthusiasm, as they went about their work.
Whatever you and I do each day, let's do it passionately. Let’s
serve passionately, work passionately, love passionately, leaving no question
where our heart resides. Let's not go half speed, but full speed, and let it
never be said of us that we were guilty of sleepwalking through life. Like
Zorba, let’s get ‘scorching’ and who knows what a difference we might make
today and even for all eternity.
Yours in faith and friendship,
No comments:
Post a Comment