By Rev. Dr Katherine Rainger, Senior Chaplain

“The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” – Frederick Buechner

This week I heard that a meaningful life comes not by tapping into what we are passionate about, but rather by paying attention to what fascinates us. The two need not be mutually exclusive, however, I was taken with the idea of tuning into what fascinates us.

Finding our passions can sometimes seem elusive. Just when we think we have found our passion we change, or our circumstances change. Knowing who we are and what motivates and drives us are highly useful things. Yet there is something about the question ‘what fascinates me?’ that I find more interesting.

Fascination invites a way of relating that is open to revelation, curiosity, wonder and mystery. It is an invitation to an encounter with that which is already present, rather than the emphasis being on us to create a particular response or way of relating.

Young people are often told to “find you passion”, quickly followed by “follow your dreams.” I wonder what would happen if we added the question, “what fascinates you?”

Try playing around with these sentences:

I am passionate about . . .

I am fascinated by . . .

What do you notice? Both are useful questions. The answers reveal different ideas and possibilities and a different posture in terms of relating to the world around us.

Human beings are complex creatures. We have the capacity for both self-revelation and self-deception. St Paul wrote to the church in Corinth in the first century: “For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known” (1 Corinthians 13:12).

Our knowledge is finite and yet we can seek the infinite God, “the one in whom we live and breathe and have our being.” The One who knows us fully.

So how then are we to live with all our passion, fascination, giftedness and limitation? The good news is we are not on a solo journey. The following prayer and song are invitations to shape our individual and common life to seek God and the common good.

Go forth into the world in peace.
Be of good courage.
Hold fast that which is good.
Render to no one evil for evil.
Strengthen the fainthearted.
Support the weak.
Help the afflicted.
Show love to everyone.
Love and serve the Lord,
rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit;
and the blessing of almighty God,
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be among you and remain with you always.

Amen.

Source: Book of Common Prayer, 1892 (modified in 1928)

Click here to listen to Seek Ye First written by Karen Lafferty (based on Matthew 6: 25-34)

Save the date: Confirmation Service, 28 July

Bishop Mark Short will be presiding at a confirmation service in the Radford College Chapel on Sunday 28 July at 5 pm. All are invited to attend as we mark the occasion in the lives of staff and students who will be confirmed. If you would like to know more about confirmation and other Christian rites, please email Rev. Katherine Rainger. Head of Ministry at Burgmann Anglican School, Rev. Alex Abecina has written a compelling piece about recognising God in our midst through reading the Bible, participating in Holy Communion and through the Holy Spirit’s presence in our lives, all of which are affirmed during the rite of confirmation.