Although there is no order of priority or importance for the quality characteristics (core values) passion and vibrancy in the spiritual life of the church affect many of the other qualities. Without spiritual passion, the desire to see people come to faith declines, the desire to serve the Kingdom of God with our gifts and talents diminishes, the commitment required to raise leaders to reap a greater harvest suffers, the quality of discipleship declines, the enthusiasm members approach services with diminishes and the depth of biblical love and commitment to one another becomes shallower. In fact effective ministry flows out of a passionate spirituality. Spiritual intimacy leads to a strong conviction that God will act in powerful ways. A godly vision can only be accomplished through an optimistic faith that views obstacles as opportunities and turns defeats into victories.
I am convinced that measuring strongly in Passionate Spirituality plays a major role in our ability to increase the quality of the other values in a relatively short period of time. Passion for God has always been, and will continue to be, a non negotiable in church life. However, rather than rest on our laurels and be lulled in to a false sense of security, it is important that we continually measure the spiritual temperature of our church (people). The pages of history are filled with examples of demise due to the neglect of foundational elements which were taken for granted as always remaining strong.
What aspects then, when measuring the spiritual passion in the life of a church, are we seeking to observe and strengthen? Perhaps as you read the following, you could consider you own spiritual life and that of your church, and allow God to challenge you on areas that may have waned in recent times.
Essentially there are four aspects in the life of the church that we address when it comes to spiritual passion, namely:
Experiencing God: Where do we see evidence that people in the church are having a dynamic encounter with the living God?
- How do people show their love for God?
- What has happened recently that has helped people fall more deeply in love with Jesus?
- How and when do people sense God’ presence and involvement in the different areas of their life?
- What recent examples do we see of God’ transforming work in lives of the people in the church?
- To what degree are people integrating their faith into the different areas of their life (profession, family, recreation, etc.)?
Passion for church: When a church’s passion for Christ increases, it will be evidenced in the atmosphere of the church and in the fruit of its ministry.
- What ways do people demonstrate their devotion to the church?
- How strong is the commitment to see God’s Spirit fully released in the church?
- What attitudes and values keep people from engaging in forward thinking about where God may be calling the church?
- How is faith promoted to people so they believe firmly that God will work even more powerfully in the church in the coming years?
Passion for devotions: In what ways do we see people practicing personal spiritual disciplines such as prayer, fasting, study of the Word, tithing and service?
- To what extent do people take the practice of personal spiritual disciplines seriously?
- What spiritual disciplines are modeled by leadership for others to see?
- How alert are we to the blockages to passionate spirituality?
- How are people held accountable for their practice of spiritual disciplines in their personal lives?
- What ministries encourage the practice of personal spiritual disciplines?
- What is the role of prayer in your congregational life?
Spiritual interconnectedness: In what ways to do we see people’s lives being transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit?
- What holds people back from allowing God to touch and change their lives?
- What has motivated people to make radical changes in their lives?
- How do we see people’s faith influence the decisions they are making in life?
- How are people sharing with others on how God is transforming their lives?
How would you respond to these questions and what steps could you take to improve? By continually taking the spiritual temperature of the church and the people and making adjustments accordingly, we will see the health and growth of our churches increase even more in coming years.
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