Philippians 4:13, Isaiah 43:19, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Philippians 3:14, 1 Samuel 17:10-11, Matthew 14:27-29, 1 Samuel 17:34-36, Habakkuk 2:2

Men and brethren, you must dedicate at least one hour each day to planning ahead and never let discomfort stop you from doing exactly the things that will help you to grow. If you spend all of your time just doing the things that feel comfortable, you are probably missing out on a million opportunities to try new things, and so many ways in which you could improve. It’s a simple truth that if you want to get better at something, you’re going to have to go through a period where you’re not so good at it, which might mean feeling uncomfortable. Hear this, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13) is for forward thinking believers. I declare you blessed.

I challenge you to start deliberately making yourself do things that will make you uncomfortable, and write about them to better understand your experiences and share them with others. Things like learning how to cook; cooking is not a woman’s thing alone. It is something every one of us can do. It saves you money and can improve your health. Learn a new trade, learn a new language or learn a new thing that will help market your career. God is always interested in new things. He says “Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.” Isaiah 43:19. You are not carrying the dominion nature of God if you are always found doing the old things. The scripture declared again “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” 2 Corinthians 5:17.

Right where you are, when last did you learn new things? When last did you invest in new business? There is a vision that God has given you for your life and the only way to get it is by “launching out into the deep” Luke 5:1-7. There are some people in this place right now that God has showed you and told you what he wanted you to do. But because you will not leave the shore and Launch out into the Deep you can’t get them done. But I wonder today is there any body here in this forum, the place of comfort and healing that is willing to leave the shore and the shallow water and Launch out into the Deep. God has promised to empower you. I declare, you shall be empowered. 

Paul says “I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:14. I am still learning as I go further in pushing the boundaries of what makes me uncomfortable. Let us look at what we must do to press forward:

Number One: Become aware of what’s outside your comfort zone. You can’t face your fears if you don’t know what they are. You cannot conquer what you don’t confront. One of the reasons Goliath was running his mouth was because anytime he appears, the children of Israel will hide in fear. “And the Philistine said, I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together. When Saul and all Israel heard those words of the Philistine, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid.” 1 Samuel 17:10-11. The battle was won by David by countering the words of Goliath with the truth of the word of God. Have you realized that there are a lot of things that can make you uncomfortable that you are not even been aware of? Those things, those people you avoid carry something you need in life. For example, big things like public speaking are obviously uncomfortable and when we feel an emotion like discomfort, it’s natural to want to push it away and not think about it. But I have found that noticing the discomfort and allowing myself to feel it in its entirety has allowed me to become more accepting of it—more comfortable with discomfort! This makes it much easier to face the thing causing the reaction. Peter was afraid of the storms but to conquer his fear he said to Jesus “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” And He said, “Come!” And Peter got out of the boat, and walked on the water and came toward Jesus” Matthew 14:27-29.

Number Two: Take small steps, not giant leaps. On many occasions, we envisioned doing wildly uncomfortable things from day one, standing up and preaching to the crowd, for example. The first time, I preached about 20 years ago, I forgot John 3:16 in an open air crusade. I soon realized this wasn’t realistic, and setting too-high goals might make me more likely to miss them and berate myself for it. I went back to God and said, Lord, you must endure me with Power and began series of bible reading and completed the bible in a year. Start with something that’s just a little uncomfortable, but doable, and then work upward. If you want to be an usher, start by smiling at strangers, and when that no longer feels uncomfortable, start saying hello or striking up conversations. Small steps and giving yourself positive feedback are the keys to progress. David did not jump in with his big mouth in God to kill Goliath; he had skills, things he learnt from taken care of his father’s sheep. “And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father’s sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock: And I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him. Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the living God.” 1 Samuel 17:34-36

Number Three: Be honest about when you’re making excuses. When you have an aversion to doing something, your brain can be incredibly good at coming up with reasons against doing that thing. Maybe you’re really not feeling that well, actually. Maybe you have too much work to do. Maybe you just don’t have enough time. It can be really difficult to tell good reasons for not doing something from mere excuses. We must learn from the man that brought his son to Jesus, the disciples could not cast out the demon. He cried to the master “Lord, have mercy on my son” Matthew 17:15. He has excuses of the ‘what’ and the ‘why’ but he wanted mercy. On the hand, we can deal with excuses by going back to God in secret to find out why we failed trying. “Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out? And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you. Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.” Matthew 17:19-21.

Number Four: Be clear about what you’re aiming to overcome. It’s good to have goals in every area of your life – marriage, family, finances – and your ministry. You will never reach a vague goal because a vague goal has no drawing power. You need to know what you want. “And the Lord answered me: “Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it” Habakkuk 2:2. And when fear steps in, don’t focus on how the goal will be reached. Focus on God’s promises in his Word. When you’re setting goals for yourself, don’t look at your own resources and your own abilities. There are more than 7,000 promises for you to claim in the Bible. Let God determine the size of your goal. We have set big goals here at the comfortzone and some people may say, “Who do you think you are?” That’s the wrong question. The issue is not who we think we are. It’s who we think God is. Determine your position, define your purpose, discover a promise, describe the profit, and desire in prayer.

Finally, God wants to give you more than what you need. His dream for you is bigger than anything you can ever dream of. Dream big and God will exceed your dream because He delights in giving you exceedingly abundantly above all that you ask or think. (Ephesians 3:20). I encourage you to Press Forward, no matter what you may be facing in your life today, Press Forward! No matter what challenges are before you, Press Forward! No matter what life may throw at you on a given day, Press Forward! God has called each of His children to serve Him, each in their own way. Don’t let the trials and tribulation of life bog you down, or sap all your drive and energy, Press Forward! The prize is before you my brethren and may you find favour with God and man.