Get out of the boat!

    One thing about me I am a Texas girl.. born and raised there for 31 years!  I am very close to my family and friends, and like most women I am not a fan of change!  Just a few months ago my husband and I were offered a ministry opportunity hundreds of miles away from everything I love.  I was excited at the opportunity for ministry, but to be very honest leaving my family, friends, and church was not appealing at all!  These are the people who have been with me through everything and know me best.  I had invested so much time into these relationships and the thought of not having them close to me and starting over was heart wrenching!  I knew that this position would require me to get out of my comfort zone and do things that were totally over my head!  Being stretched was an understatement!
    As my husband and I headed to meet with our potential employer the thought of leaving was really beginning to set in, and my emotions were really starting to take over!  To make things worse about an hour away from our destination I look up and all I see is SWAMP!!  Did I mention I'm not a fan of long bridges... especially ones forever long over nothing but SWAMP with no exits or turnarounds?!!  At this point the thought of moving is out of the question!  I thought to myself 'leaving all that I've ever known, starting over, and having to face this monstrosity of a bridge just isn't worth it'!
    How many times in life have we made decisions about our future based upon how we feel?  We allow what we see and feel to dictate our decisions instead of relying on the One who has it all figured out.  One of the greatest lessons I've learned is never allowing myself the luxury to do what I feel, or don't feel like doing.  Anytime fear is a factor I never make a decision, but instead get alone with God.  I've found that in moments like these are generally when I hear Him the loudest!
    I will never forget as we were going over that bridge the words He spoke to me!  "You can get out of the boat and walk on water, or stay in the boat and remain the same".   The choice is ours!   Since those words my life has completely changed!  The fear I felt when facing change and a few challenging obstacles along the way was nothing compared to missing out on all that God had for me!  What so many of us fail to see is that we block our dream when we allow fear to grow bigger than our faith.  Faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not yet seen.  We don't always see the end result and how things are going to turn out, but we trust Him and know that if He said it that settles it!  A month into the move we are already ministering to a thousand kids a week, feeding the less fortunate, discipling young men and women, and working with the most loving group of retired people I've met!  To think that I almost missed it all because I was afraid to get out of the boat!!  Never allow fear to be a deciding factor!  Keep walking, keep trusting, never stop believing, and watch as your wildest dreams come to pass!  The choice is yours... choose FAITH!