Stepping Out Of Your Comfort Zone

   

Today was a crazy day. We had a crazy snow storm last night. I was getting things together to start my day when I heard from the other room… “Can I go back to bed now?”  It was my eldest daughter. She had received a text from a friend claiming that school buses had been cancelled. After some researching on my part I discovered that it was not our school buses that had been cancelled, but the catholic school board buses. It put everyone behind because she did not want to get up and get ready for school because in her mind, there was no school.  She dreaded the thought of going out in the cold.   It did not matter what I said. I am Mom I was misunderstood. Her friend said there was no school.  I proceeded to tell her that did not matter what her friend said. I am Mom and she was going to school. I text one of my youngest daughters’ friends, to make sure that the bus had indeed picked her up and sure enough it had. This was not the news she wanted to hear. She knew that the bus was coming but still proceeded to object. She did finally catch her bus with much hesitation and complaints but in the end she went.  I am sure this little story sounds familiar to many as a child and as a parent.

Once they had left and I sat down with my tea and relaxed before proceeding onto my day. I thought about how this day reminds me of us sometimes when it comes to God’s direction on our lives. Sometimes God shows us, or directions us to do things and we don’t like the answers he has given us. So we object and we doddle along because we don’t want to do what he is directing us to do.  Just like my daughter this morning who was objecting because she wanted to stay in her comfort zone of a cozy warm home over drifting cold snow. To me that makes a lot of sense. I too would rather stay in my cozy warm home all day if I could.  Many times God’s direction takes us out of the comfort zone.

Maybe the direction is just to exercise our faith in God. First we need to listen to his voice. This could lead us to walk into uncomfortable situations.  It could also be that God is directing you to love the unloving or to forgive your enemy. It could be that he is directing you to reach out to those in need. Maybe it is to just let go and let God. I know my hardest challenge to just hand it over to God and leave it there. I pray for something and then the next minute I find I take it back. My comfort zone is trust. I have a problem of trusting because of things I have dealt with in my past. It takes a lot for me to put my trust in something or someone. Over the years my trust is better.  When you step out of your comfort zone at first it will never be comfy. As we give it to God and we step out in faith, it will become easier. Stepping out of your comfort zone is never easy but it is all worth it in the end.   

Whatever your comfort zone is I encourage you to take the steps to step out of your comfort zone today.