I need to admit something.
I have always *ahem* envied those who have stayed in the same church all their life, have lived in the house they were born in, and have even lived in the same state/town in which they were born.
Why do I envy people in those areas? Because those are areas in which I never had the opportunity to live. Those people display a certain "comfort" that I have never had .... a certain "comfort" in knowing that their life never really "changed" (please don't get offended ... I will expound on this in a bit).
Two Sunday's ago, we had a missionary to the Phillipines come to our church to speak/preach (I wasn't able to hear his first sermon, due to the fact that I have a role in the upcoming Christmas program). However Mom shared with me an illustration from his sermon.
In his sermon, he gave an illustration on a frog:
Mr. Frog was very content! He had a lovely puddle with a quite a few bugs. As he looked around he said "ahhh, I'm never leaving this puddle ... I'm comfortable right where I am!" That night, a flood came, and Mr. Frog was washed away. When he woke up, he found himself in a pond, he was startled, but then he started to take in the view. He could see trees (he hadn't seen trees at his puddle), a lot more bugs, and wait what is that ... [gasp] very pretty lady frogs. As Mr. Frog looked around he said "ahhh, I'm never leaving this pond ... I'm comfortable right where I am!" That night, a flood came, and Mr. Frog was washed away. When he woke up, he found himself in a lake, he was startled, but then he started to take in the view. There was water as far as the eye could see, an abundance of bugs, and a lot of lady frogs. As he looked around he said "ahhh, I'm never leaving this puddle ... I'm comfortable right where I am!"
The point with this illustration is that, we cannot say "I'm comfortable" because when we're comfortable, we may limit the work God wants us to do. When Mom told me gave me the illustration and then told me the point I just shared with you, I immediately tried to apply it to my life.
Then it happened .... God burst open my box, and let's just say ... I um ... didn't take it to well!
For the past five months my family and I have been going through a hard time ...... Dad was in the "running" to be preacher at the little mountain church in which we attend (you can read about it here). Ever since I can remember, Dad has always had the call of ministry (being a preacher) on his heart. Last Wednesday, it was announced that Dad would not be the preacher .... and to be honest, I was mad! Not at the church, and not at Daddy .... I was mad at God.
I needed to talk to someone. I needed encouragement. I needed someone to talk some sense in to me. I texted my dear friend Toria ... venting on how mad I was at God for allowing this to happen. I told her that all I wanted was to finally have a church to call "home" for the next 40+ years. What she told me, confirmed to me that God was trying to teach me a lesson.
"Ali, but just think at how much you have grown over the past couple years. Comfort equals complacency. If you are comfortable, then you won't want to move when God wants you to."
Today, during my morning Bible reading, I was thinking about all of this. How can I give God all the glory through the current circumstances? How have these circumstances changed my life?
*I have to remember that through a closed door, God will open a window
*While I still desire for my me and my family to stay in the same church, I can't say "I'm comfortable .. I'm gonna stay right here". Here's why ... what if in 2015 God calls me into the mission field? If I'm comfortable, then I won't want to move where God wants me to.
*Through all these circumstances, I have learned/am still learning that while others may have similar beilefs, I can't look down on them when they don't share the same exact beliefs as me.
*Through these circumstances, I have learned that there is a fine line between Law and grace, and if you pass the line either way, you get into a life of legalism.
So .... in order to end this post, I have a question for y'all:
Are you comfortable where God has you right now? If He were to call you to move to a different place in life, are you too comfortable to move?
Here are three words of advice to you: don't get comfortable
In HIS grace, Alisha
xoxoxoxox
