Passionate Job, Passionate Life
written by Rev. Dr. Scott Paczkowski
“For you shall go out in joy, and be led back in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall burst into song, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. ”
I just read an interesting article entitled “The Dangerous Myths of ‘Passions.’” In her article, Jessica Wildfire encourages readers to stop believing the myth that you shouldn’t stay in a job until you are 100% passionate about what you are doing. Jessica rightly yells out, “Here’s a radical idea. You might take a job for the money, and then find the meaning later. The passion comes after the fact.” Job passion has less to do with the perfect situation and more with our way of approaching our job.
Don’t get me wrong; some jobs are so soul-sucking that passion can only be found by lying to yourself. Unless your soul is decimated forty+ hours per week, which isn’t the norm, you can find joy in most jobs/careers. I appreciated that Jessica started her article by stating, “A career is like a marriage. Sometimes, you’ll tell yourself you can’t stand it.” Her rather crass description has the ring of truth: commitment. Commitment isn’t always easy, but it is fulfilling.
Like a good marriage, passion isn’t about outside stimuli; it is about meeting each day with an openness and willingness to look and enjoy the little passionate moments in each experience. Passion is more about you than the other person(s) or the right situation. Often, the more we bring passionate care, kindness, and interest to your workday, the more passion you will receive.
Prayerfully commit to meeting your workday today with passionate warmth, kindness, and care. We cannot control other people, but we should not let them control our passion. Ask the Holy Spirit to strengthen your commitment to passion. I know, some days, no matter how hard you try, the day is soul-sucking. But there are other days when your passion might change your workplace permanently. Just remember, it begins with you and your attitude. Trust the Holy Spirit to give you a hand. Enjoy!
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