Fear and Passion

My husband built a large campfire tonight.  The temperature is dropping toward freezing and the frost will be heavy
tonight in the Peruvian Andes.  A big campfire is a fun diversion, and also a necessary heat source in our rural home. 

As the evening grew later, my daughter  filled the dog bowls.  The sound of the dog chow hitting the metal bowls was just too much for Luna, our yellow lab.  For the past hour, Luna has been cowering on the porch in fear of the campfire that we have
in the courtyard tonight.  But, at the sound of food hitting her bowl, the previously fearful, trembling Luna bounded through the yard and through the fire to get to the food.  If we were social or animal behavioral scientists, we could conclude one of three
things here… A) Luna is starving, or B) Purina Dog Chow is incredible, or C) Luna is crazy.  Well, I can promise you that Luna is NOT starving, as is evidenced by the fact that she has quite the tubby figure and is often nicknamed “Gorda” (Fatty) by our neighbors.  So that leaves us with option B or C.  And the truth is probably somewhere in the middle of both.  To Luna, Purina Dog Chow is absolutely fabulous.  And, Luna is a little crazy.  Truth be told, food is Luna’s passion, and she stops at just about
nothing (not even fire!) to get to it.

I was thinking about this as I watched the campfire tonight.  What will we do for our passions?  Luna was fearful of the fire.  It was threatening to her.  But for food? Even fire couldn’t stop her.  This reminded me of our initial calling to the mission field. 
There was fear… fear of the unknown, fear of possible failure, fear of giving up everything back home, fear of leaving the familiar for the unfamiliar, fear of going to a country that had only recently ended 20 years of terrorism and civil war. Our families and friends back home had fears for us and our safety.  But our calling was so strong!  Our passion fueled us.  The
fears could not hold us back.  We surged forward toward the passion that called us.  Some called us crazy, too, like Luna.  Many thought we were being unreasonable and irresponsible.  But that passion… that was too strong.  We couldn’t ignore it.  Nothing could stop us from that drive to push forward.

We continue to be drawn and fueled by a passion and a calling.  It is something so strong that our fears of the unknown, the “what ifs”, the possibility of failure, the perceived threats – those just aren’t strong enough to hold us back.  When passion and calling take over, there is an unstoppable force that wells up inside and drives you forward.  It’s an indescribable, inexplicable power and desire that comes from deep within and calls us… Through the fire, toward the prize.