Sermon Central
As founder of the Passionaries Institute, I have studied American giving, volunteering and "passionaries"--a word I've coined to mean "passionate visionaries who start or help build nonprofits." This includes churches engaged in service. I have seen God in motion through all kinds of social entrepreneurs, and I have discovered secrets that can help inspire your community and congregation to engage in extraordinary service efforts.
The Bible teems with direction from Christ for passionate service on His behalf. He deeply desires His followers to "know the plans He has for them" (Phil 4:13), and He uniquely gifts Christians for His glory and the building of the Body (1 Peter 4:10). When His people know their gifts and implement them in the Church and community, God's purposes are fulfilled, people experience joy and satisfaction, and miracles unfold that point the whole world directly to Him.
The secular media bombards our communities with soul-depressing negativity, while the world is actually brimming with miracle-makers. Want proof? Here are just three of the remarkable statistics on giving and volunteering in America:
- According to Giving USA, American individuals, corporations and foundations together donated the astonishing amount of $100 billion in 1990. And despite three economic recessions, Americans continued the upward spiral of generosity each year, raising their yearly donation amount to $303 billion in 2007!
- The number of U.S. charities recorded by the IRS has soared to over 1.2 million, and an estimated 300,000+ charities are subsets of church ministries. If a movie screen scrolled down a list of these charitable organizations' names every five seconds, it would take 69 days to finish the display of names! Each one of these charities was started by an individual passionary or a group of passionate visionaries.
- The number of Americans volunteering is also skyrocketing. The Points of Light Foundation currently tracks 61 million volunteers, which excludes most church and mission activities. The Foundation reports that the volunteer workforce represents the equivalent of over nine million full-time employees, their combined efforts worth $225 billion. And again, the number of volunteers is increasing every year.
This is power, the Power of One Person + Others they mobilize. Great things are happening, because God has hard-wired our hearts for nobility. Christians are specifically directed to focus first on the truth and then on what is noble (Phil. 4:8). David talks of the "zeal for God's house that consumed him" in Psalm 69:9; it's reiterated in John 2:17 when Jesus (the ultimate passionary) cleared the temple to protect the interests of worshipers. We want to make a difference in the world, and there is no better way than by following Christ's call to reach out to others in need. Let's look at how you can unleash this power-for-good in your church and watch it multiply in ripples of life-change throughout your community and beyond.
Five Ways for Unleashing Gratitude and Powerful Passions
- Support and Share Stories of Role Models. For every social problem, there are purpose-driven problem-solvers. They are real people with real names, and their stories identify them and inspire others that anyone--whether young or old, rich or poor, happy or broken-hearted, healthy or physically challenged--can make a difference. The Passionaries Institute highlights several great examples of these heroes as examples of "Faith in Action--God in Motion." For example:
- Millard and Linda Fuller started Habitat for Humanity, and at age 70 started the Fuller Center for Housing. They have built homes for over one million people.
- Mary Kay Beard, an ex-con who was an expert safe-cracker, created Angel Tree. Every year, this organization gives 600,000 children Christmas gifts from their mom or dad who is serving time in prison.
- Jimmy Murray, while driving through a fast-food restaurant thinking about a friend whose child had leukemia, first envisioned his founding of the Ronald McDonald Houses, which now serve millions of sick children's families.
- Chris Crane, a successful entrepreneur, grew Opportunity International into one of the world's largest micro-credit lending charities in the world, giving hope through tiny loans made to budding entrepreneurs in the poorest of developing countries.
- Introduce Your Passionary Members to your Congregation. Christ-followers, especially new ones, will hear your message about the presence of gifts in the Body, and they will enjoy the stories of Christian heroes and legends. But the people in the congregation don't always personalize the message by implementing their giftedness; they might comment, "Well, that's fine for them, but I could never do that much for God or for people."
We see in 2 Cor. 13:4 that God's glory and power shows up best in "weak" people--passion inspires passion, which then turns into action. When the apostle Paul gave detailed reports of what God had done among the Gentiles in his ministry, the Jews related to him and praised God (Acts 21:19-20). Jesus often reminded his followers that they will be recognized "by the fruit" of their gifts and actions (Matthew 7:16-20, John 13:35). When believers see other passionaries serving in His name, their insecurities and concerns about implementing their own passions are allayed, and they can envision themselves accomplishing something notable for the Kingdom.
For any great nonprofit or church outreach to succeed, it needs three things: the passionary (passionate visionary), the "passioneers" (volunteers) and the "passionors" (donors). Whenever possible, feature a "passionary" or a servant-giver in your congregation and share his/her journey with your church. A passionary's testimony can powerfully increase the potential of what can be done in your community. Most people are totally unaware of the real heroes in their midst. Your own members sharing their own stories, especially after beginning the service with examples of passionary role-models, can change the service paradigm of your congregation. - Appreciate and lift up the passionaries, passionors and passioneers. Once passions have been shared, shower gratitude and thanks upon them, and watch the ripples flow. The gift of compassion almost never expects gratitude, especially by those truly following Christ's example. However, the power of your heartfelt "thank you" and offers of prayer cannot be overestimated. Solomon advised us to refrain from boasting, but we might "let another praise" us (Prov. 27:2) so that the calling we were given might be confirmed. And when we make our calling sure, God promises we will never fall but will receive a rich welcome into Christ's eternal kingdom (2 Peter 1:10-11). What greater encouragement is there?
Teach, preach and exemplify thankfulness for the actions of those who make a difference in your church, your community, our country and the world. Pastor Tim May, the military pastor at New Song Community Church in Oceanside, California, recently acted on an idea that came to him while participating in a church service at the nearby Marine base, Camp Pendleton. Tim collected names and addresses of the servicemen's parents, so that New Song volunteers could thank those parents for letting their child serve and defend our country. One of the first mothers to receive a letter replied just days later to the woman who wrote her: "You have absolutely no idea what your letter meant to me, how I felt knowing that someone had met with my 18-year-old son and was praying for him. There are no words I can use to thank you for writing." How easy it is for a simple letter to be a tremendous blessing.
Spark an inexpensive campaign of gratitude to the passionaries in your church and community. The following are just a few ideas to unleash gratitude:
- Pastor Rick Warren started a campaign at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, CA where church members thank heroes performing commendable non-profit services in their community.
- TAT: Thank a Teacher: Write a hand-written note to a teacher or mentor who has changed your life or the life of your child.
- Help change the media by thanking the writers and editors of positive stories and television shows. Good television is sparse and usually thankless, but this can be changed.
- Help your members find their passion. The Bible says the Spirit's gifts are given for the common good (1 Cor. 12:7). They are also given to help people find their purpose in life. As Christians, the most important work we do is to complete the work Jesus gives us (Acts 20:24). Jesus instructed his disciples to become servants if they wanted to become great (Mark 10:43). Often a believer must practice these principles before they are fully understood, and helping a member discover his/her passion provides the direction needed to get started.
The Passionaries Institute has developed a simple Passion Survey, a powerful tool for churches to facilitate the networking of people to best utilize their abilities, interests and passions. The survey asks questions about members' interests, passions and involvements. Collect this information for the benefit of your members, but also analyze the collective data to better understand where God might be leading your church. For example, if God places a large number of members in your church with a passion for youth, consider that God might be calling your church leadership to begin a new ministry in your local schools or community.
To further assist your members, regularly profile a passionary in your church and how he/she makes a difference. Use the question, "What am I passionate about--above and beyond family, work and friends?" as an icebreaker at church events or potlucks. Form affinity small groups based on passionate interests (i.e. children's ministries, hospitality, technical ministries, etc). Use curriculum designed to encourage and support their passions, such as the Passionary books or the Passionaries' discussion and growth questions designed for churches. Create opportunities to participate with "God in Motion." When your members discover their passionary interests, they will want opportunities to express them. It will be important to correctly channel that new visionary passion into something that will result in a kingdom win. Proverbs 19:2 warns against having "zeal without knowledge," and the apostle Paul affirmed that passion is good, but it must have purpose and authenticity (Galatians 4:18). Providing appropriate opportunities and matching them to the budding passionaries in your church will ensure a successful project and godly encouragement of the servant in Christ.
Churches become a depository of solutions because they have the desire and ability to meet people in various ways. Outside the walls of the church lie communities with multiple opportunities for service. World-impacting needs can be met through global givers and "ripples of revenues." When people are aware of the needs, it's easy to channel passions and network resources.
Consider forming service groups, perhaps gathered by like giftings or interests. Everyone has a part to play in service, and where one plants, another waters, and still another may reap (1 Cor. 3:5-6) but all glorify God, regardless of the role or outcome. Groups who give and/or serve together are powerful and fun, and they build communities. Two potent examples of this are community foundations and family foundations. Family foundations enlist a whole family unit; community foundations bring people together to look at and meet needs in their communities and beyond. There are now over 700 community foundations around the country with people giving their time and resources to assist others. The largest of these is The Tulsa Foundation in Oklahoma, which had assets of $378 million in 2007. Another example, an organization profiled in my book The Gift of Passionaries, is Social Venture Partners, in which groups of business leaders advise nonprofits and help fund them.
Think big, challenge everyone, and turn faith into action. In the event you need ideas or would be interested in partnering with another nonprofit service organization, www.Passionaries.com lists volunteer opportunities geographically by zip code through organizations solving social needs. There are also tools available to maximize donations and to help you ensure that the organizations you wish to work alongside are efficient and accountable. The stewardship of precious passionary gifts is cherished by God, and a bit of sleuthing enables the giver to ensure maximum return on investments.
All of these exhibit God's heart for the underprivileged. Riveting stories of real passionaries ignite ideas, turning possibilities into realities and creating successful role-models for others to follow. You can be a change agent for Christ, fighting against the world media's bad news and gossip, by sharing positive stories of real passion that have already changed our world. As Jesus said, the world may see our good deeds and glorify our Father in heaven (Matt. 5:16). Imagine the possibilities of unleashing such God-glorifying acts among his people in the church!
Church leaders and pastors hold the keys to the hearts and passions of their congregations. They can unleash passionary power and gratitude--giving that can transform lives and ignite hearts. The secrets and tools are yours to keep, or share them and watch the impact ripple out. When you motivate your members to "passionate" with you, you will witness the transforming power of God. So, light fires in your congregations, fan the flames with prayer and watch the power of God in Motion in and through your church members as they make positive changes in extraordinary ways!
