Called to Create

From the age of 5 and maybe even earlier you looked up to someone. It may have been a character on a TV show, a book or in a movie. It may have been a sibling, parent, grandparent, an aunt, or an uncle. Nonetheless, you looked up to someone. As you got older and became more aware of the environment you lived in, you may have grown to look up to a celebrity or upperclassmen, a well-known author, or any well established successful member of society.

You see these people selling best-selling books, becoming professional athletes, big time actors/actresses, graduating college, opening businesses of their own, or getting a big promotion. You see these people and can not help but dream to be as successful as them someday. Maybe you wondered like I did what it is about them that made them capable of that kind of success. Were they just lucky? Do they just know the right people? The answer, although it took me some time to figure it out, was none other than passion.

Passion is what drives every individual to do what they do each day. When there is no passion in a field you work, there will be little drive to keep returning to work each day. Days become burdens to work, nights become inconvenient shifts, and your life is eventually taken over by the job you work to make enough money to pay the bills but not at all something you enjoy.

We all have this thing called an it. We have that thing that is our passion. It’s the one thing that brings us the most energy when we participate in it. Now I am talking the one thing besides Christ that gives you energy. That thing that brings you joy to do. That thing that when you participate in it you feel belonging, purpose, and a true heart behind what you are doing. It gets you out of bed in the morning. It gets you fired up. It may be playing music, acting, singing, teaching, playing sports, coaching, or running a business. Whatever it is that is your it, however, that passion can take you only as far as you let it. Your it can either take you on a journey to fulfill your dreams or it can become your greatest regret.

“You must expect great things of yourself before you can do them.” – Michael Jordan

For me my it, is writing. From a young age, writing was the thing that got me fired up and excited. It was that thing I dreamed of being successful in. I would dream of becoming a best-selling author and writing books people loved. As I grew older, that dream became bigger and changed slightly to writing books that inspire and encourage people. This is my it. This is what gets me out of bed in the morning. On an average day, it takes me a while to get out of bed. But, if I know I am going to be writing, I get out of my bed pretty fast. All the planning, outlining, plotting, character development, etc. gets me so fired up! Here is the problem, I do not write as much as I should.

As a Senior in my fourth of five years in college, I have my schedule pretty busy. I have been taking half undergrad and half grad classes for most of my college career, in order to receive my Masters in a five year period instead of 6 or 7. I have played volleyball for three of those years, basketball for two, and tennis for two in the spring. I have been working while in college about 10 hours a week and on top of all of that, I am a apart of leadership in my dorm. With all of this together, on top of going to class for 18 credits each semester and doing the work outside of those classes to get good grades, my writing has been put on the back burner for quite some time. My it has been pushed off my schedule and I believe that making time to pursue my passion will give me such great joy and fulfillment if I just make time for it.

Now, of course, I have responsibilities and can not just work on my writing 24/7, however, when you know your it how can you not pursue it as a part of your weekly schedule? Your it is a God-given passion personal to you and the plan that He has for you. He gives talents and passions for a reason! He gives us passions so that we would pursue them and glorify Him in them because He has created each one of us individually unique to a purpose of growing His kingdom. As I started to think of goals for 2020, I started to hear in my head the same words I heard during the last two New Years Day thoughts, “This year I will finish my manuscript”.

You see, I have been working on this book since May of 2017 and understandably it has not been my priority during the craziness of juggling my busy college life; but, I can no longer allow my passion to be unexplored and not pursued whole-heartedly. God gave me the passion of writing and with that passion, He will use me to do great things, to encourage those that need it, and to reach people that only I can reach. He wants to do the same with you and whatever passion He has gifted you with. Whatever your it, pursue it in your daily life or even your weekly life. Make time to pursue the God-given passion you hold.

For 2020, I have chosen a new goal than one in the last couple of years. My goal is to pursue my writing career the same way that I pursue my college career. Don’t let your calling go to waste. Chase your passion with dedication, discipline, and determination. Be all in and stop letting your God-given passion take the back seat in your life. Pursue your it. There is a world in need of your passion to be in action.

"Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world."

-Harriet Tubman