Getting Rid of Comfortability

IM IN PANAMA!!!

A majority of my squad and I are currently living on a YWAM (youth with a mission) base and doing ministry within the community and surrounding communities of Boquete! It has been a crazy few weeks, but I love it here.

Although I have been here for less that two weeks, The Lord is already igniting passions inside of me and allowing me to meet others who are doing things similar to what he is calling me to in the future. I am soaking up all the knowledge and wisdom from everyone that is in this community. I am also learning to be constantly in tune with the Father’s voice and step into uncomfortable situations with boldness.

About a week ago, a small team, including myself, went out to walk the local neighborhoods, going door to door, to just listen and show God’s love. As we were leaving the base, the Lord told me to only intercede. He didn’t want me to speak while we did evangelism, but instead let my team do the speaking while I prayed. At first, I did not want to do this. Evangelism is one of my favorite things, so to not be able to speak was hard and uncomfortable! But I knew that this voice was the Father’s. So I listened. 

That day, we only visited one home. At first, I didn’t know what to pray for; it felt uncomfortable and weird. However, as the house visit continued, the Spirit began to lay thing after thing on my heart. Prayers for the woman we were speaking to, prayers for my team doing the speaking, and other, very specific prayers. At one point, I found myself praying “My God reigns supreme” over and over again. Although I didn’t know why I was praying this, I know that God knew. I barely spoke the entire visit, but I experienced so much of the Holy Spirit. If I hadn’t allowed myself to be uncomfortable, I would have never experienced what I did. 

Isaiah 42:16 says, “I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do, I will not forsake them.”

God often calls his children into scary, unknown situations. But just as this verse says, he will provide! He will guide our steps the whole way! Yes, he is calling me to live a life of uncomfortability; but with discomfort, can also come reliance and trust. As small as this evangelism example might be, I know that my time in Panama will be a season characterized by uncomfortability; and I want it to be. I want my whole life to be. 

How often do we miss out on what the Lord has for fear of being uncomfortable? How often do we seek comfort over godliness?

I do not want to look back on this season and see that I played it comfortable and safe the whole six months. I cannot go home and revert to living a complacent and safe life. That’s not how Jesus lived, so why should I live that way? Life with Jesus is unsafe. It is anything but comfortable and complacent. I need to stop trying to make it any other way. 

I’m so expectant to see all that the Lord does here in Panama, and I want to be a part of it in any way that I can. He moves in the uncomfortability, so that’s where I want to be.