Leaving Our Comfort Zone

I am not a fan of surprises. Never have been.

In fact, when I was young, I would literally panic in the back of my family’s minivan after church when my parents refused to tell me which restaurant we were headed to. (I was later told that this was partly an effort to teach me to be more flexible, and partly because they found my over-the-top reaction quite humorous. I’m sure it was.)

While I have matured (a bit) as an adult, I still don’t particularly enjoy navigating unknown situations. That anxious feeling in the pit in my stomach always manages to rear its head when I’m walking into a new environment where I don’t have a good grasp of the layout, system, or rules.

For our final week of the KLRC Listening Challenge, Tracy Balzer is encouraging us to listen to God when our journey leads us into new territory. Another way of saying that might be, “when God leads us out of our comfort zone.” And while what defines your comfort zone may be different from mine, most of us tend to struggle whenever we’re forced to operate outside of whatever that zone is. We feel out of control.

The thing is, giving up control is exactly what God asks us to do.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart
   and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways submit to him,
   and he will make your paths straight.”
Proverbs 3:5-6

If we are to trust in God with our whole heart, that means we're looking at an "either/or" proposition – we can’t fully trust in God while also keeping some of the control back for ourselves. It’s scary to give up control, but as we listen to God, we learn to trust that He is faithful to straighten our path.

Ready to take that step with me? Check out The KLRC Listening Challenge for some great suggestions on how to listen to God as He leads you into new territory this week.