When God has called you to a particular task or purpose, it’s important to guard your passion, because passion destroys fear and ignites determination. Guarding your passion means that there is a particular time to reveal what God has revealed to you about your purpose—and there are particular people to whom you should reveal it.
I’ve learned the hard way that if you don’t guard your passion by guarding your mouth, it can be an open door for discouragement, especially in the early stages of dreaming your dream or executing your God-given task.
Sometimes it can be challenging to be quiet, because passion creates enthusiasm. And, sometimes when we are enthusiastic, we may want to tell the world about how God has called us. After all, we are excited, and we are certain everyone else will be, too! However, a wise and discerning person knows that protecting their God-given calling sometimes means being quiet for a time—and sometimes it means that there are particular people that you will never be able to speak with about your plans.
In the book of Nehemiah, Nehemiah had a passionate desire to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem. His passion was evident in his tears and the mourning described in Nehemiah 1:4. But even though he was passionate, he did not allow his passion to cause him to blurt out his plans to the world. Instead, he spoke to the King and asked for help in getting his supplies, but other than that, even after he went to Jerusalem to check things out and survey the damage done to the city he wrote, “I had not told anyone what my God had put in my heart to do for Jerusalem.”
Remember this: There is a time to speak, and a time not to speak.
How many people have stopped chasing their God-given dreams and desires because someone who doesn’t think it’s possible says, “Well, that’s a good idea, but it’s not going to go anywhere. You should do something else more worthwhile, something that will prosper.”
When God has spoken to you, ask Him when He wants you to reveal what He wants to do through you, and ask Him who should know about your calling. This can keep you from discouragement and keep your passion fueled. And then, there will come a time, just like Nehemiah, that He will lead you to speak to the right people who will support you in your calling.
