Comfort zones. We all have a comfort zone we don’t like to leave. But think about it…what keeps you in your comfort zone? Fear. Fear is what keeps you there. Fear of the outside of the comfort zone. But we should be more fearful of staying in our comfort zone than leaving it. Why? Because if it’s fear that keeps us in our comfort zone, then it’s the devil that created it for us. He created a comfort zone for us to comfortably reside in and he created the the fear of stepping outside of it. Your comfort zone has a large cushy couch to relax on. Your comfort zone comes with chocolate covered vanilla ice cream bonbons. The longer you lay on your couch eating chocolate covered vanilla ice cream bonbons, the less power you have to get up and step outside your comfort zone. Fear brings us more bonbons.  Fear keeps the remote at our finger tips. Fear keeps us comfortable in our comfort zone and every time we say, “I can’t do that because it’s outside my comfort zone,” our friend Fear puts up another bar to reinforce our prison.

You get comfortable with Fear, your jailer becomes your friend and you’re happy to stay in your comfortable prison. You could leave if you want to, but you don’t want to because it’s OK to use the excuse…”That’s outside my comfort zone.” And everybody says, “Oh yes, that’s ok, I understand.” Yes, we all understand, because we are all imprisoned in our own little comfort zones and happy to stay there curled up on our comfy couches eating chocolate covered vanilla ice cream bonbons surrounded by soldiers with the first name of Fear. Fear of strangers. Fear of giving up control. Fear of flying. We name our fears and accept them meanwhile forgetting 2Timothy 1:7, “For God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power…”

I wonder if Peter ever wished as a kid he could walk on water. But, he couldn’t walk on water, and he knew it. Walking on water under his own power was impossible. During the storm when Jesus called Peter to step outside the boat, he was asking Peter to step out of his comfort zone. He was asking Peter to glory in his own weakness and rely on rely on a power outside himself. Despite the precariousness of the storm Peter felt safer in the boat than out of it. But when Jesus said, “Come”, and invited him to walk on water, Peter stepped out of the boat. He stepped out of self reliance and stepped into reliance on God. Peter personally witnessed in his own life the power of God. The others who stayed in the boat saw the power of God at work but did not experience it themselves.

The power to live a life of joy exists only outside your comfort zone. The power to walk on water exists only outside the boat. Jesus is outside the boat walking on the water. Fear does not exist in the presence of Jesus. Therefore your fear is not outside your comfort zone, your fear exists only inside your comfort zone. In the presence of Jesus Peter did not drown in his fear. The others on the boat though continued to rely on their own good common sense to keep themselves safe. If we continue to rely on only what we think is possible, that’s all that’s going to happen. “Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask for imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.” (Ephesians 3:20) Step outside your comfort zone. Witness what God can and will do for you. Then go out and witness to others what God has done for you. Do not make the rocks cry out for you. Step out of your comfort zone, step out of your fear, and witness the power of God at work in your life.