All of us are passionate about certain things.  Sometimes we get the privilege of sharing with other people about the things we are passionate about.  After pouring our heart out about our thing, we come to realize that not everyone is passionate about the same things that we are and no amount of our sharing or teaching is going to change that.  Now this is not a problem normally.  After all, not everyone needs to be passionate about the latest fashion choices for chihuahuas or the complete history of the storm trooper in the Star Wars universe.

But what if your passion is for Christ and His gospel and you find other Christians who don't share that passion. After all, that is a passion that we all should have.  How do we get people to be passionate about Jesus?

Ultimately, I don't think we can.

Don't misunderstand me.  We can and should create environments in our churches that exalt Christ, teach the gospel, and model passionate discipleship.  We make it as easy and as normal as we can for people to be passionate about the gospel.  At the end of the day, however, I don't think you can teach or preach someone into long-term passion.  No amount of persuasive words or well crafted environments will cause someone to be radically in love with God.

So what do we do?

Pray.

Only God can create passion in the heart of a person.  Only God can take a cold, dead heart and transform it into a heart that longs for His word, longs for intimacy with Christ, and longs to see the Kingdom advanced through teaching and living the Gospel.

We probably need to spend a little less time crafting weekend services/gatherings/events/experiences and more time on our knees before our God begging Him to move in the hearts of His people.