Part 1: Uncovering Your S.H.A.P.E. · Lesson 3
Let your heart beat for God. Your passions reveal another dimension of the masterpiece he is creating in you.
"Passion is the fuel of life. It is the great source of energy and drive. It is what makes us explore new vistas, develop new relationships, and seek solutions to perplexing problems."Bob Buford, Halftime
Kay Warren was living the dream. She had three great kids, two wonderful grandkids, and a comfortable home in Southern California's upscale Orange County. She and her husband, Rick, had cofounded one of the largest congregations in the United States. She was a Bible teacher, a popular speaker, and coauthor of a curriculum teaching the essential truths of the Christian faith. She was, in her own words, the stereotypical "white, suburban soccer mom."
That all came crashing down in 2002.
Thumbing through a magazine at home, she turned a page and froze in horror at photos of African people ravaged by AIDS -- children and adults with skeletal bodies whose eyes were covered in flies because they were too weak to brush them away. A box on the page said: "12 million children orphaned in Africa due to AIDS."
"That was a shocking statistic to me," Kay said, "because I didn't know a single orphan, and I couldn't believe there were twelve million orphans anywhere due to anything."
When a month had passed and the images still haunted her, Kay realized she had come to a crossroads. She could either return to her comfortable life or hear the cries of the suffering and let her heart be engaged.
"I made a conscious decision to open my heart to the pain," she said. "When I did, God broke my heart. He shattered it in a million pieces, and I cried for days."
She cried in shame because the AIDS pandemic had been building for two decades and she had done nothing. She also cried because God allowed her to feel the suffering those with AIDS felt. "I knew I couldn't stand before God when he called me home and look him in the face and tell him, 'Yes, I knew about the suffering of millions of people, but I did nothing about it.'"
Kay began reading about AIDS, attending conferences, and traveling to Africa to witness the devastation firsthand. She held a three-year-old girl whose mother was dying of AIDS. "God, where is the mommy who gets to sing to her at night?" she cried. "Where is the daddy who gets to throw her into the air?"
God broke Kay's heart, and now it throbs with passion for forty million people around the world afflicted with HIV/AIDS. She and Rick created Acts of Mercy, a foundation that cares for hurting people the way Jesus did. She travels the world, challenging Christians to bring relief in Jesus' name to those in pain, sorrow, poverty, and illness.
"Today, I'm a woman seriously disturbed about the HIV/AIDS pandemic sweeping our world," she says. "God has changed my heart and revolutionized my dreams."
Rick Warren writes: "Physically, each of us has a unique heartbeat, just as we each have unique thumbprints, eye prints, and voice prints. Out of all the billions of people who have ever lived, no one has had a heartbeat exactly like yours. In the same way, God has given each of us a unique emotional 'heartbeat' that races when we think about the subjects, activities, or circumstances that interest us."
Your heart -- in the S.H.A.P.E. framework -- is where you are centered, where you desire to serve, the altar upon which you wish to place your talents. Heart refers to empathy, attraction, or "draw" toward a group of people, a field of expertise, or a particular type of service. Evaluating your heart helps you determine where you might best use your gifts, where you wish to serve, and whom you wish to serve.
In Kay Warren's story we can see five passion principles that inspire us to dream big and think beyond our fears, discovering our own unique emotional heartbeats for God.
Because God was driving her life, Kay Warren set out to slow the pandemic of HIV/AIDS in the world. God is the ultimate driver of your life too. The key is to discover the cravings the Creator has put in you -- the deep yearnings that often lie hidden within your spirit. These passions are clues to where you should be serving. Ask yourself: What do my dreams and desires drift toward? What do I really want to do for God? What motivates me to take action?
For Kay Warren, the people she cares about clearly include those impacted by HIV/AIDS. God has placed people in your life who he wants you to help him reach. The question is: Who is God nudging you to help? You may feel drawn to people who are spiritually apathetic, those facing marital conflict, or those who simply need Jesus. Perhaps you are driven to make an impact on a specific demographic: teenagers, business professionals, young children, the elderly, married couples, or the homeless. Ask yourself: Who do I feel I can most profoundly influence for God?
For Kay Warren, the needs she meets include spiritual, emotional, and physical needs among those affected by HIV/AIDS. No matter how gifted or driven you are, you cannot meet every need within your target group. The Bible says, "He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When others are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us" (2 Corinthians 1:4, NLT). Start by focusing on the needs that God and others have met in your own life.
For Kay Warren, it is the desire to dramatically decrease the spread of HIV/AIDS in the world through care, education, and medicine. Millard Fuller saw a need for housing and founded Habitat for Humanity. If you live your life with God long enough, he will stir your heart and direct you to the cause he has personally chosen you to take on.
Kay Warren's dream is to help eradicate HIV/AIDS in her lifetime. John Eldredge writes: "So, if you had permission to do what you really want to do, what would you do? Just start making a list of all the things you deeply desire to do with your life, great and small. And remember -- 'Don't ask yourself, How?' How is never the right question. How is God's department. He is asking you what. What is written on your heart?" Sometimes dreams get buried by jobs that are unfulfilling, situations that are unraveling, and finances that are overwhelming. Unbury them.
Because there are so many different kinds of needs to be met, it helps to narrow your focus. Consider these six primary categories:
| Type of Need | Description | Common Gifts Used |
|---|---|---|
| Spiritual | Helping people discover Christ and reach their full potential in him | Teaching, wisdom, evangelism, knowledge, prophecy |
| Physical | Providing food, clothing, shelter, and basic necessities | Giving, helps, healing, administration, hospitality, pastoring, mercy |
| Relational | Helping people develop authentic, Christ-centered relationships | Encouragement, wisdom, hospitality, mercy, discernment, pastoring |
| Emotional | Counseling, encouraging, and listening to those in pain | Encouragement, wisdom, mercy, discernment, pastoring |
| Educational | Helping people learn and grow to their full potential | Teaching, pastoring, knowledge, prophecy |
| Vocational | Helping people overcome barriers and reach professional or personal goals | Wisdom, leadership, teaching, encouragement, discernment |
Here is a list of causes that others have committed to championing for God's glory. Which ones stir something within you?
Consider the deep yearnings within your spirit. What do your dreams drift toward? What do you really want to do for God?
Think about the people God has placed in your path. Who do you feel most drawn to help? What age range or affinity group?
Consider the six categories of needs: spiritual, physical, relational, emotional, educational, and vocational. Which two do you love meeting most?
Look at the list of causes above. What cause or issue makes your heart race? Where could you make the greatest impact for God?
If you had permission to do what you really want to do for God, what would it be? What God-centered dreams have been buried by life?
Based on your reflections above, try to write a single sentence that captures your emotional heartbeat -- your heart for God's kingdom.
1. What does the "H" in S.H.A.P.E. represent, and what is its primary indicator?
2. Which of the following is NOT one of the five Passion Principles from this lesson?
3. According to the lesson, meeting which type of need involves helping people discover Christ and reach their full potential in him?
Kay Warren's story challenges us: What would happen if we stopped protecting our comfortable lives and allowed God to break our hearts for the things that break his? Take time this week to ask God what he wants to show you about your heart. Consider sharing your five passion reflections with someone you trust -- a friend, mentor, or small group member. Ask them: "Do these passions you see in me match what I have written?" Often those closest to us can see our heart more clearly than we can ourselves.