Zeal and Spiritual Fervor

When it comes to living out the Christian faith and following Christ, there are distinct differences that those who do not follow Christ should notice in us. One is that we have committed our bodies to Christ as a living sacrifice. We are not conformed to the patterns of this world, but our minds have been transformed and renewed.

We also should handle situations and trials much differently. Romans 12:11 says, “Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.“ This gives us several commands that should separate us from the average person living to the beat of their own drum.

First, we should never be lacking in zeal. Zeal means to have great energy or enthusiasm in pursuit of a cause or an objective. We should be filled with energy and enthusiasm because no matter what is going on in our lives, we are living for Jesus and our objective is to follow Him.

Next it says to have spiritual fervor. To have fervor is to be intense and have passionate feeling. God wants us to have great energy, enthusiasm, intensity and passion when it comes to following Him. This does not mean that everything we do will be exciting. But it does mean that we can still do whatever we are called to with high energy, enthusiasm, and passion.

What should separate us as Christians is not always what we do, but how we do it. God calls all of us to different vocations and destinations. Not everyone will be a preacher. Some might be architects or content creators; some might be road workers or school teachers. It takes all kinds. God wants His people in all environments to spread the Word of God.

No matter what you are doing, there will be fun things and there will be not so fun things. It is not about what you are doing, but the attitude in which you do them. As a believer, always have zeal and spiritual fervor. You are not just living for what the day brings, but something much bigger. You are living for Almighty God! If that doesn’t give you zeal and fervor, nothing will!