Pressing Beyond

Aug 12
2 min read

Pressing Beyond Our Comfort Zone

How often have we heard the adage, ‘stepping out of our comfort zones?’ To first identify; a comfort zone is a mental or physical space where one can be 100% themselves, safe and secure in their familiar surroundings. It’s also a plateau that breeds stagnation. After my personal search, I found many benefits to stepping out of our comfort zones. We first segue into a new and challenging environment where we build resilience. Our horizons expand which breeds new perspectives. We hatch ideas, stretch our minds and invigorate new thoughts. Ultimately, we grow.

Yet, in the spiritual, stepping out of our comfort zones slightly differs. In Deuteronomy God told Moses, “You have made your way around this hill country long enough; now turn north” (2:3). God was telling Moses that he and the Israelites had spent enough time wandering around the mountain country of Seir and should change direction. North means pressing beyond our comfort zones and past struggles in order to experience God’s promises.

When God called Abraham out at 75 years of age, He told Abraham to pack up, leave his home, his country and his people. In short, God told Abraham to jump out of his comfort zone and keep moving. And when Abraham did as he was told, he eventually found himself in the Promised Land.

Stepping out of our comfort zones does not mean we have to cross zip codes or relocate to another state. Stepping out of our comfort zones is forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, embracing the unforeseen. From the book of Isaiah, God assures us, “I will lead the blind along an unfamiliar way; I will guide them down paths they have never traveled. I will turn the darkness in front of them into light, and level out the rough ground” (42:16). Furthermore, He promises never to leave us. And God always makes good on a promise.

Unless you haven’t, are you ready to step out of your comfort zone?