I found that nothing in life is worthwhile unless you take risks
nothing Nelson Mandela said there is no passion to be found playing small and settling for a
life that's less than the one you're capable of living anybody who's not ever willing to risk
will never do very much in this world so get up
and go take the risk take the gamble take the first step take action
and don't let another day slip by
like we are not just here to to read stories and books about other people doing other things
we are called to live it out
you understand the difference do we see the irony of the lives that we often live where we become
content with these routines where we watch we binge watch tv shows about a life someone else is
living and we call that living we play video games about an adventure but we never leave our own home
and we look at pictures we scroll through social media
we look at pictures of a life that someone else lives
we're called to an adventure but to live this kind of adventure that God has for us one of the shifts
that needs to take place for us is moving from routine to risk routine to risk and so routine
maybe a better word would be rut right like it's just the things you do they're not necessarily bad
or evil they're just things you do day in and day out without ever stopping to think where is this
leading and what difference am I making with my life the ruts that you might not even feel like
you picked them yourself they were just handed down to you in whatever rut your parent was in
that's the rut you find yourself in and you do what they did and you get to the end of your life
and that's that's it you don't ever really stop and think is this is this what my life is supposed
to be is this the difference I was supposed to make is this what I've been called to do
and we just get in these we just get stuck in these ruts and you get into a routine long enough
you're going to make a rut you get into a rut long enough you're going to fall into a grave
and that's how most people spend their life on this earth it's just this normal routine this rut
this scrape and Jesus says I came in John 10 10 that you might have life and life more
abundant not a boring predictable existence so many of us are just existing
rather than living we're brought up to believe you've got to stay safe you know don't get too
excited don't believe for too much the sad thing is when that comes over into our Christianity
where people are you know what don't expect God to do too much don't believe God for too much
just stay safe stay in the boat just stay with the status quo but the fact is that so many of us
live our lives in fear we live our lives just in what we perceive to be the safety of this
little world that I can control and we never step out and up and into the purpose of God
for our own lives because faith is all about risk faith is actually doing something that we can't
do because we need God to do it and the enemy if he can't take our soul so if we are saved
and he can't get us what he's going to try to do is make us live safe so that we never step out in
faith and do what God has called us to do without faith the scripture says it's impossible to please
God and I want to please God so I want to live a life of risk and I want to live a life of faith
if you're going to move forward then you're going to have to step out of your comfort zone
I think for many of us we want to live out the adventure we want to be a part of the mission but
but we have become comfortable with with a leash right that we have this power we have the strength
that comes from Christ and yet many of us are held on by these uh ropes that he he broke a long time
ago but we don't move like for some of you it's the rope of um of what other people have said
to you about you and maybe that was when you were young and you just were conditioned to
believe some things but what other people said about you is not what God has said about you
or maybe it's the rope of what other people think that you're just you're tied to other people's
expectations and you know God's calling you to take some risks but what will other people think
if you do so I talk to high school graduating high school students who oftentimes they feel called
into ministry want to serve the Lord in ministry but they've got the expectations of mom and dad
got expectations of a guidance counselor feel these expectations we got to make a certain
amount of money you got to be this version of success and so they stay where they're
at they're conditioned to believe that that's that's what matters most what other people think
or maybe for you the rope that holds you in place is the rope of comfort
like it's hard to break free from that and so Jesus came to set us free from those things
but for for many of us we continue to live as slaves or as prisoners of these things even though
even though Jesus has set us free our fears are the cages that hold us back so many of us are just
paralyzed by our fears rather than living the abundant life that Jesus Christ has called us
to live we are paralyzed by the fear of what other people think that would be one of the biggest ones
and you know what ultimately it really doesn't matter what other people thinks
what does God think and so many of us we settle because our mum might not be happy or our father
might not be happy or the teacher might not be happy or our friends how many of our destinies
have we put on hold in order to impress our friends and to stay down where we are
fear of failure that is a really big one what if I fail well what if you succeed and what if
you fail get back a failure is highly overrated what are we all so scared of failing for big deal
big deal get back up and have another go don't be content to just read other people's story
there's a story God wants you to live the thing that should scare us more than anything else
is regret it's not taking a risk the thing that should scare us as we get to the end of our life
and we we regret that we didn't take the risk and do what God's called us to do
that is what I want you to be afraid of of waking up in six days or six weeks or six
years or 60 years in being no closer to your goal you've made no progress
that is what you need to be truly afraid of
when you come to the end of life will you have more regrets from the risk that you took or from
the risks that you didn't take what if I get in this new relationship Joel and I get hurt again
that's what happened last time what if you get in it and you're happier than you've ever been
what if it's a divine connection what if I take this position and I'm not good at it
I'm not successful what if you take it and you excel what if you discover talent you didn't
know you had what if it opens doors to more opportunities I can tell you every significant
accomplishment in my own life every major victory I've had to step into the unknown
you cannot play it safe your whole life and reach the fullness of your destiny don't let the what
ifs talk you out of it what if I fail what if they say no what if I don't have the funds
you'll never know unless you try taking a step of faith is stepping out to do something when you
don't know how it will be provided for come on maybe God is wanting some of you to let go of your
backup plan and trust him completely if you'll trust him and take that step into the unknown
not knowing how it's going to work out then he'll show you the next step step by step he'll lead you
into your destiny the challenge is we like details we wouldn't have any problem taking
that step of faith starting that new business going back to school moving to that new location
if we knew where the money was coming from how long it was going to take that the right people
would be there if we had all the details it'd be easy to step out here's the key
God doesn't give us details he's not going to show you a blueprint for your whole life
if you had all the facts you wouldn't need any faith he's going to send you
out not knowing everything if you'll have the boldness to step into the unknown
do what he's asking you to do doors will open that you could have never opened the right people will
show up you'll have the funds the resources that you need the scripture puts it this way God's word
is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path a lamp implies you have just enough to see
in front of you God is not giving you the light for the next 50 years it's like the headlights
on your car when you're driving at night you can only see a hundred feet in front of you
you don't pull over because you can't see your destination 50 miles away you keep driving
as you go further then you will see more will you take that step with the light that you have
if you're waiting for all the details you're going to be waiting your whole life we all
want to be comfortable but being in God's perfect will will make you a little uncomfortable there's
a healthy tension to where you have to stretch you have to pray you have to believe you're not
sure how it's going to work out that's when you're growing that's when you're learning to trust God
in a greater way God is not just interested in the destination he's teaching you along the way
he's getting you prepared growing you up and on purpose God will put us in situations where
we're over our head where our friends can't help us where we don't have the experience too often
we shrink back and think I'm not going there I'm not qualified I'm too nervous what if
it doesn't work out God knew you would be nervous he knew you wouldn't feel qualified that's a test
are you going to talk to yourself out of it are you going to let the fear of what you can't see
hold you back or are you going to be bold and step in to the unknown in the unknown
is where miracles happen in the unknown is where you discover ability that you didn't know you had
in the unknown is where you'll accomplish more than you ever dreamed when you find yourself
in a situation where you're over your head you don't think you have what it takes that's God
stretching you he can see things in you that you can't see in yourself it may be uncomfortable but
don't shrink back keep stretching keep believing keep dreaming step by step God is leading you