6 Reasons Why Desire Is Important

It all starts with a desire. A desire for more, a desire for purpose, a desire to live an abundant life. A desire to be great and significant. A desire to do what you were born to do. A desire to do that thing that you can’t stop thinking about.

Just to clarify here, I’m talking about righteous desires, things that relate to the desire to do something good, something meaningful, something that the world needs. I’m not referring to physical desires for food and sex. Ok, so now we have that awkward part clarified, let me explain why I wanted to start the year off talking to you about desire.

You can’t achieve your dream if you don’t have a strong desire for it.

Whatever it is you want to do in life you have to truly desire, yearn for, and have a passion for. A mere preference or like to something is not going to sustain you. The reason I mention this is because without a true desire for something, no matter how hard you work you will at some point give up on your dream or worse, you may continue to push through and not live a fulfilling life. I do not want that for you.

Desire is connected to your purpose in life.

I believe we are all born with a desire to do something significant in life. Our desire is unique to us and the natural abilities we were born with. I do not believe we are given desires to tease us, but to guide us. I also don’t believe we are given the desire to be something and not also given the natural abilities to do it. You will not be given the desire to be a professional equestrian rider if you don’t like horses, are afraid of them and don’t like riding them! Ok, so totally referring to myself here.

Desire is the thing that will keep you going in life when things aren’t quite happening.

Desire is like a flame that never goes out. At times it’s blazing and roaring but at times it’s simply a little ember smoldering away, nevertheless it can’t be quenched. Desire is given to us for a reason, it motivates us to keep moving forward even when things don’t quite look like they are happening. Think of desire as your little warm motivator that gently pushes you forward.

Desire is this pressing feeling that makes you feel uncomfortable when you don’t satisfy it.

I’ve had the desire to be an Artist for a very young age and I am so grateful that I have always know this. But there was a season in my life where I tried to shove my desire deep down and ignore it. For a period of about 7 years between art school and going into teaching I did not do any art! Shock horror. You see after Art School I tried the whole get a studio gig and be a professional artist at 21 and everything is totally going to work out. It didn’t. My studio buddies pulled out and I was left with a lease to cover and art that wasn’t selling. I was deflated to say the least. So I got sensible jobs working in hospitality and later in administration as a Personal Assistant. All the while trying to suppress my desire to paint or draw or do anything creative. It didn’t work.

Honestly the desire was still there, it was like the little flame I referred to. Finally, I gave in. I had this big magnolia tree outside my house and it kept stirring up my desire to create. I started drawing magnolia’s and doing small paintings. I continued to create little by little and slowly the desire grew even stronger, to the point where I decided to study towards to being an Art teacher. Then for the next 10 years I developed, refined and served my gift.  

Now I’ve come full circle back to that desire I had as a young girl in kindergarten where I stood at my easel knowing that being an Artist was what I desired to be. Had the desire not continued to flame I would not have picked my paint brush again.

Desire will guide your plans

You must discover what it is you truly desire to do in life before you make the plans pursue it. Do not chase a dream if you aren’t 100% into it, if you don’t feel so strongly about it or you couldn’t imagine yourself doing anything else. It will not work. You will grow to resent it, run out of steam and not be living a fulfilling and purposeful life.

However, once you know what you desire to do in life, when you make plans you feel excited and aligned with your calling in life. Your plans, although they may change, ultimately lead you towards that thing which you desire to be in life and serve to the world.

Desire is the foundation of living a successful and purposeful life.

Success is such a loaded word and I believe society has got way out of hand in how it defines success. I do not believe being successful means having oodles of worldly possessions, making lots of money and rising the corporate leader (unless of course this is related to your purpose). I do however believe being successful is doing the thing which you are called to do in life and fulfilling your life assignment. Success cannot be measured against anyone else’s path in life. Success is individual and is determined by how far along you are in your own life assignment.

If you don’t know what you desire to do in life you will live a life without purpose. Desire is directly connected to your purpose in life. The more you walk out your desire, the more purposeful you feel, the more fulfilled you feel and the more ‘successful’ you are because you are ultimately doing what you were designed to do in life.

I want to encourage you to take the time to consider what it is you truly DESIRE to do in life. What is that thing that keeps burning deep down inside you.