I’ve been trying to decide if I am out or in my comfort zone.  I am wondering if it can be both at the same time.

I volunteered to teach Vacation Bible School this year.  For years upon years, I directed VBS.  One year, I even wrote our entire VBS curriculum.  After a year of pouring everything we had into VBS and still feeling like we weren’t reaching others with VBS, our church took a break for a couple of years from VBS.  Last year, VBS was brought back.  But I did not volunteer last year.  But this year, I stepped out of my comfort zone and volunteered.  This was a very difficult decision for me.  However, once VBS got going and I was back to teaching, it felt so natural.  And I enjoyed my time leading the devotional area.  So, the question does indeed exist was I out or in my comfort zone?

I loved working with these ladies!  They were a blessing to be with!

Sometimes God opens unexpected doors for us to walk in.

A month ago, God brought a lady to my house to clean.  She had never been to my house before.  And because of the way things happened that day, I had a little bit of time alone with her in my house.  (That never happens that I have time alone in my house!!)  Let me just say it was a God ordained appointment.  I stepped WAY out of my comfort zone that day.  But since that day, God has connected my heart with this young single mama and her daughter.  I love both the mama and the daughter.  They are precious!  I tell the sweet mama all the time she is so much braver than I am!

This week, I have gone and picked up her daughter and took her with me to VBS.  I let her help me in the devotional room!  It has required me to travel to parts of town I’m usually not in!  Feeling out of my comfort zone for sure.  But as the trips were more frequent this week, I became more comfortable!   And although there is much about the situation that feels out of my comfort zone…I think I might be in my comfort zone.  If there is anything I know how to do, I know how to love!  And I have been blessed to love this sweet mama and her daughter. The sweet daughter came home with me one day.  We cooked together, we did their laundry together, we played with glue and glitter, and I taught this sweet girl how to weave potholders!  She was SOOOO proud of this!

She and her mama have been in our home for dinner.  They have gone to church with us for the past month!  And not only have I been blessed by loving them, I have been blessed by them loving me.  Last Sunday, when this sweet girl came and buried her head in my shoulder and hugged me my heart just melted.  I look forward to more months of being out and in my comfort zone at the same time with this family!  Please pray that God would direct my words and give me wisdom to love well!

I need to know and be reminded about Jesus and His love for me everyday!

Sometimes being healthy takes me out of my comfort zone or is it in my comfort zone?

As part of getting healthy after being soooo unhealthy, I learned to drink shakeology shakes.  They have so many vitamins and super foods in it that I definitely wasn’t getting in my diet.  I still don’t get all the good stuff in my diet that I need.  When I first started my shakes, I literally would get one or two swallows down and that was it!  I tried every protein drink on the market!  Ugh!  None of them were good!  But with a little encouragement from a friend, I kept at this shakeology drink because it was so much more than just protein.

Today, I drink my shake almost everyday.  I can testify it has helped me feel better physically.  It has helped with my emotional status.  And when I go without it a few days, I definitely feel worse!  But just me sharing this, takes me out of my comfort zone!

Not only that, I signed up to start this new workout program with some other ladies!  OH MY GOODNESS.  Definitely NOT in my comfort zone.  But I am signed up!  And I intend to step out of my comfort or I might find out it is in my comfort zone after all.

You know what else I do on occasion?  I actually taste of vegetables!  They don’t all bless me!  But I taste of them now.   And I have fallen in love with squash and zucchini.  I still have to work on getting some fruit in my diet.  But hey, it’s a work in progress.

Learning to accept practically from friends has been another area that feels out of my comfort zone but it’s really in my comfort zone.

I LOVE to help others!  I love to do things for others and I love to bless others.  Just like I was sharing above…loving others comes easy to me. Accepting love does not come easy for me.  Today, I stepped out of my comfort zone or what felt like out of my comfort zone with a friend.   This has become a common occurrence at my house.

Ice bag on shoulder.  I’ve been nursing this crazy shoulder for awhile now.  However, in the past month, it has about got the best of me.  I’ve had deep tissue massages, I’ve done oils, and I’ve taken anti inflammatory drugs.  Nothing is working.

I have a friend that knows about shoulders hurting so today I got to experience an exercise session where I actually did some shoulder exercises under this friend’s direction.  Y’all, receiving is hard!  Being pushed out of the comfort nest a little further is hard!  Letting people into my life is hard!  Sometimes I wonder if I will ever get comfortable letting others in my personal space!  And I have a large circle of personal space!

This week, I am heading out of or in to my comfort zone in brand new territory.

I am headed to a conference.  I didn’t intend to share details of this adventure.  It has been my secret adventure for several many months now.  A few people have known and have been praying, reading, and supporting me in this process.  But this week, I head out to meet with some publishers with a book proposal in hand.  Two book proposals to be exact.  I’ve already met some wonderful ladies online who have walked through difficult life situations and they too desire to share their story with others. Now, this week, I look forward to meeting some of them in person and sharing publisher stories together.

So while doing something like this is WAY out of my comfort zone, I am super duper excited to walk in obedience to what God has called me to do!  I have no clue what will happen this week, but I know I am walking in obedience and what feels like out of my comfort zone.  But in reality, I love women!  I love worship.  I love to learn new things.  So while it feels out of my comfort zone, I think it might be right in the middle of my comfort zone at the same time.

Trying on clothes deciding what I’m going to wear to meet with publishers and this was one of the pictures that I fell in love with.  Zine was taking pictures so that I could see all of me in whatever I had on.  I asked him to take a couple.  I had just figured out that while I thought I was waiting on him to take a picture he had been taking hundreds of pictures and I thought I was waiting on him.  Arghh!  Welcome to the world of digital pictures.  We would have never done that with 35 mm film!  Then I had to delete hundreds of pictures later!  But this picture just makes me smile.

What I think I am learning about being out of or in my comfort zone…

God isn’t concerned with my level of comfort.

God is concerned about my obedience, God is concerned with how I love others and choose to be loved, and God is concerned with stretching me and molding me to be who He wants me to be.