Iron Sharpens Iron - Stepping Out of my Comfort Zone

A new acquaintance of mine on the web recently gave me some advice concerning stepping out of my comfort zone so that I can accomplish things for God's kingdom. My point of view on this is probably tainted by many years of doing just that, but in retrospect I realize that faith is more than clever cliches or one liners. Sometimes faith is waiting. What follows is an slightly edited version of my response to him. Hopefully it will give you some insight into my though process and maybe God can use this to help someone.

I have seen the sacrifices some were willing to make and are still making. I myself thought, that for service to the church I am attending, I should make whatever sacrifice necessary to accomplish the goals of my pastor and the church. I served for three years running digital video and power point. I quit this when I discovered my children were growing up without me, and my wife was becoming distant. However, many of those who have sacrificed in this manner, have lost their families, or their job, and then experienced financial ruin because they have forgotten the priorities established in their lives. My priorities are...

God - This is the keystone to your life, it involves a personal relationship with God through His son, Jesus Christ. This is not church attendance.

Family - If you have entered into a marriage, then you have an obligation to keep that together and serve and nourish it spiritually, emotionally, and economically. Job or Church do not take precedence because that could destroy the commitment to Family.

Job - This is how you keep things together at home, by providing stability, food, and a roof over your families' heads.

Other stuff - Some things I haven’t though of, but they are important.

Church - What most people associate with a building where believers meet. This would probably be better if it were simply home groups, but nevertheless it is important, and you should gather together with believers because iron does indeed sharpen iron.

As a 40 year old man, saved since I was ten, I have had plenty of opportunities to screw my life up (just read my resume on the home page http://tomroe.com for example), so the catch phrases "everything has a price" and "move out of your comfort zone", are all too familiar to me.

Many Christians don't realize how important a contract is to God, probably because they haven't actually studied the Bible cover to cover. In august I will have been married 20 years. A marriage is a contract proclaimed before man and God. Letting obligations like this fail because of service to a job or a church (which, in spite of its good work is still just a building not a God) is a mistake, and an error in judgment.

"Comfort zone" is a funny place - Most people associate it with home and family, but those things aren't always comfortable, and sometimes holding a family together is the most uncomfortable thing to do. Sometimes keeping your family together in spite of fellow church folks abandoning you as friends because you've stopped attending their church temporarily is the hardest thing in the world to do, but if you are a man of God, you will fight to keep the contract you made, and keep your family in love and together. This is a battle worth winning. Sometimes you have to abandon your dreams temporarily, because other priorities have precedence and need to be nurtured and cared for. If you loose sight of this, you will loose sight of God's will for you because there will be no peace in your life. There will be no time for you to enJOY the life God has given you.

There are some wonderful things God has given me to do for His kingdom. But, I am willing to wait for Him to open the way, clear the path, and provide the means for me to accomplish those things. I don't have to run over my family to get there. Sometimes the road ahead looks like it is crowded with opposition. God can fight those battles for you, you don't have to forsake contracts and obligations to fight them yourself.

Sometimes, the best way for a man to demonstrate God's love is to show that he loves his wife, and his children. We are living the example God has given us when we truly understand what it means to leave your mother and father and take a wife. The children that are born of that relationship are living reminders of what God must feel toward us. Every time I hear my child say daddy help me. I realize that God is listening to me with the same compassionate ear, and He wants what is best for me.

This letter is meant to show you a bit of what I mean by "not going to jeopardize my family". Hopefully it will mean more to you than a catch phrase or a clever saying. Hopefully it will reveal to you some of the values God has placed in me.

Your turn - Iron Sharpens Iron.

In His Service,

Tom Roe - tom@tomroe.com