It happened that four lepers were sitting just outside the city gate. They said to one another, “What are we doing sitting here at death’s door? If we enter the famine-struck city we’ll die; if we stay here we’ll die. So let’s take our chances in the camp of Aram and throw ourselves on their mercy. If they receive us we’ll live, if they kill us we’ll die. We’ve got nothing to lose.” 2 Kings 7:3 -4 (MSG)

The Lord will often allow us to be forced out into unfamiliar territory in order to get the best out of our lives. We cannot remain comfortable and see progress. One day, I was complaining about it being too hard to lose weight. Yes, here I am again talking about my eating challenges, but I learned so much about discipline and self-control through my struggles. I pray that you will be able to draw from my successes and failures as you read.

The Lord allowed me to know that I don’t like being uncomfortable. Being uncomfortable was the root of the many challenges I faced. It was not that I did not have what it took to see success along my journey, whether in weight loss or other ventures. The giant I faced was to remain in my comfort zone. Too often, we are faced with decisions of moving forward or staying in the state that we are in. The lepers in our key verse evaluated where they were. I loved the perspective they received after taking notice of their condition. Take a look at the latter part of verse 4, “If they receive us we’ll live, if they kill us we’ll die. We’ve got nothing to lose.”

The lepers knew they would die if they stayed by the gate or if they moved into the enemy’s territory. They chose to move out of their comfort zone and face their fears. Upon going into the enemy’s camp the Lord allowed the enemy to hear an army coming towards them. Imagine that! Four lepers sounding like an army! When we decide to be uncomfortable in order to move forward in our goals, we tap into the power of God that has been made available on our behalf. When this happens we are assured victory!

Now the choice is yours. You can remain in your comfort zone or you can decide that being uncomfortable is really nothing compared to the victories you will receive. As for me, I am seeing small victories every day.

Lord, too often we choose to remain comfortable and complacent because of fear of the unknown. Increase our faith in you as we step forward to accomplish even the toughest victories. Our weaknesses only give way for your strength in our lives. Open our eyes to see this. In Jesus name Amen
Grace and Peace,

Mary

© Mary Pinckney 2014