Outside My Comfort Zone

Welcome! If you are participating in the What Happens When Women Say Yes to God online Bible study, we are on chapter 1, “A Soul That Longs for More.” I love the subtitle, “Whatever God says do, do it!”

Have you ever felt God prompting you to do something that never occurred to you before? Has God laid something on your heart and you thought…what?

What did you think when God told Lysa TerKeurst to give her Bible away to a stranger? I’ll be honest, one of my first thoughts was “I don’t want to give my Bible away. I hope God doesn’t tell me to do that.” And then I started to wonder…could I do it if He did tell me to?

God knows what each of us can do, even when we don’t know ourselves. He knows where our comfort zone is, and where and when we’re ready to step outside of it. This is where He leads us to do something we normally would not do, something we think we can’t do, or something we might never think of on our own.

For each of us, He will lead us in ways He knows we are ready for. I think it’s safe to say that we might not agree with Him! But He knows us better than we know ourselves. If He says we’re ready, then we must be ready.

I remember the first time I felt God tell me to pray for someone I did not feel like praying for at the moment. As we argued, harsh words were spoken and feelings of hopelessness had been expressed. I was angry and frustrated, and I was not in the mood to pray! Praying for someone I was upset with did not come naturally for me. But God’s direction at that moment was clear and urgent. I was to pray for this person, so I did. Over time, praying for someone who had hurt or angered me became more natural, something I didn’t have to force myself to do.

Think about it—as we grow in Him and learn to trust Him, what seemed outside our comfort zone yesterday is not as hard today. What scared us then, doesn’t scare us now. What we were sure we could not do, we are now accomplishing.

As the boundaries of our comfort zone expand, God continues to move us outside of them…moving us to where He wants us to be. We squirm, we question, we feel uncomfortable, but not for long. When we get comfortable, He stretches us again, knowing the change and growth in us He wants to see.

So, for Lysa TerKeurst, God led her to give away the Bible she loved. Someone else might be led to pray in a way that does not come easy for her. One woman might feel God leading her to join a Bible study, something she has never done before. And for another woman (me) God might lay on her heart to lead an online Bible study—something she never pictured herself doing. But something she finds she can do, and is excited to do, as long as she keeps her focus on Him.

What did you think of chapter 1? Is there a particular section that spoke to you? Something you underlined or highlighted because you don’t want to forget?

On page 14 Lysa TerKeurst shares a prayer. For more reading on that, I’m including a link to a blog she posted on April 14, 2011. Lysa TerKeurst – My Jesus in 5 days

Please share your thoughts by posting a comment.

God Bless,

Laura