One thing I have reluctantly had to admit is that I don’t always have Abraham faith. When one really delves into his story, his story was laden with change. Change, often times, is something I have been pretty resistant to.
Let’s face it, leaving your own home is no small feat (Genesis 12:1), especially during the Bible era. In our day we have options to hop back on a plane and usually, there are provisions and backup plans that are available if that adventurous leap of faith didn’t work out. And, this could all be done in a matter of hours.
I imagine it wasn’t quite that easy back then. But, then again, maybe that’s a good thing. Maybe not having easy access to falling back into one’s comfort zone is a blessing in disguise for it forces that venture forward. It forces us to take on new terrain and enter new callings as we try to acclimate and navigate our new surroundings and circumstances.
Often I feel the ease of looking back hinders our progress. Unchartered territories can be scary, uncomfortable, and demanding of our time, talent, and emotions. But what if it leads to something greater? What if that step of faith allows you to do something miraculous that you could never see yourself doing? What if it opened new doors of opportunity that you never could have imagined being able to walk through?
I guess that’s why it’s called faith. Almost blindly, without full perception and without knowing where every piece of the puzzle already fits, we are asked to play along anyway. Engage in the unknown no matter what the current reality says. After all, according to the Bible, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen,” (Hebrews 11:1).
Comfort zones, though they appear safe, are in fact very dangerous. Walking in the land of familiarity may seem like a sure bet but in them lays unexpected traps. Traps where dreams lose their freshness. Traps where ideas lose their strength to be propelled forward. Traps where talents get wasted in this pit of unseen snares.
God has always wanted the best for all His people. But, when He calls, it is up to them to make the move. He may not be asking you to leave your homeland, but where or what do you feel Him pulling you toward? What area of your comfort zone has become so stale that now it too is very uncomfortable, yet, you’re still too afraid to make a move?
If Abraham had not put action behind his calling, he would have never been dubbed the father of faith, and so many things in our biblical history would not be traced back to his stepping out moment.
I wonder if we boldly step out today, what miraculous future events will point back to our time when we chose to leave the safety of our comfort zones?
One thing is for sure if we stay where we are, and if we keeping doing the same thing over and over again, nothing will ever change. Don’t substitute comfort and reluctance to change for what can be. Who knows what God wants to write in your future story? Step out of your comfort zone and let Him write something amazing!