Timely Insights into God's Word from Khandielese Reyes

“Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.  So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran.  And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came.  And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh.  And the Canaanite was then in the land.  And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him.  And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto the LORD, and called upon the name of the LORD.  And Abram journeyed, going on still toward the south.” (Gen 12:1-9) 

In these passages of scripture, the Lord delivers a promise unto Abraham: “I will make thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.”  But, in order for this promise to be completely fulfilled, Abraham had to be willing to leave his “Comfort Zone”, to be removed completely from the things, people, and place he was most familiar with as the promise was not going to be sent to him, He had to go to it!  Without hesitation, he packed up his things and left to a place he knew not of, yet putting his faith and trust in what the Lord had spoken, he knew that once he arrived at his destination, the promise of God for his life would be fulfilled. 

Sometimes the Lord may have to move us out of certain situations, and places, away from certain people in order to fulfill his promise and will for our lives.  We are waiting for the blessing to come to us, but there are times we must allow Him to LEAD US TO the blessing.  We may not receive it where we’re at, and may be required to GO where it awaits.   Far to often we miss an opportunity to be blessed and used of the Lord, simply because we are to afraid to move out of our comfort zones, to let go of the things most familiar to us and venture off to an area we know not of.   

When the Lord called Peter, Andrew, James and John, according to the Gospel of Matthew he said :”Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” And immediately they left what they were doing, left their lively hood and family behind and followed him.   They didn’t ask “who is this man” or “what need does he have for us”, but simply left the ship, left their nets and everything behind and without question, followed Him, not knowing where they were going.  Some Christians of today may have reacted differently if it were they who were approached by the Lord in this manner, and would be filled with questions before even contemplating following Him: “Where are we going?  Follow you where?   What are we going to do?  How long will we be gone?  I don’t have extra clothing with me! Shouldn’t I have packed some things first?  What will I tell my family, I can’t just leave them without saying something! I have to really think about this!  Can my friend come with us, I don’t want to come by myself?  How can I leave my job?  How long shall I tell my boss I’ll be out, I only have a weeks vacation time available!  What will we do for food?  Where will we sleep?  How far are we traveling…..”   

Many of us, although we voice our desire for it, are truly afraid of change if it means we must leave certain things and certain people behind and go forward BY FAITH, in the work the Lord has called us to do.  Like baby birds we are afraid to step out of the nest and truly begin to soar.  We want to go, but desire first to know all the details of the Masters plan, and almost always want to take a part of the “Comfort Zone” with us, something familiar that we can hold on to throughout the journey.  However, when the Lord births a great vision into your heart, and declares that such he shall bring to pass, he will require that you let go of everything you once held on to and simply BY FAITH, follow him.  This may include letting go of certain people in your life, for not everyone who is with you, is FOR you!   Not all would be supportive, and many because of their negative and doubtful speech, may cause you to begin to waiver in your faith.   You then may begin to question the promises of God, and may begin looking at the vision he birthed in you through your natural eyes.   You then see it as “Impossible” and decide to remain where you are locked away in your “comfort zone” afraid to believe, afraid to let go, afraid to take that leap of faith, afraid to Follow Him and ultimately this fear will cost you the blessing. 

For many within the body of Christ, their “Comfort Zone” is the “building”, the place where they go once or twice a week for fellowship and worship, the place where they call “Church”.  They allow their light to be exposed in the building, among familiar settings, and familiar people, yet in the presence of an unbeliever, they cover their light being uncomfortable having come out of their “Comfort Zone”.  They remain hidden behind the pews, afraid to venture out into the highways and byways to share the gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord with the lost and hurting.  They ignore the spiritual cries of the “lost sheep”, refusing to come out of their comfort zones and bring the sheep in, but rather are waiting for the lost sheep to somehow find their way to them.  They desire not to be in the company of such they deem as “hardcore sinners”, for to be in the presence of prostitutes, drug addicts, thieves, murderers, etc. whom ALSO need Christ Jesus, this would disrupt their familiar “comfort zone”.  Instead, they’d rather be in the presence of those who have the FORM of “Godliness”, but DENY the power thereof, those who outwardly have the appearance of righteousness, but inwardly are filled with wickedness and all manner of evil.   

The Lord says it is time you “Come out of your Comfort Zone” as your service to him is limited where you are at, and he cannot fully use you for his glory if you wish to remain hidden.  He desires NOT that you serve him only behind closed doors, but commands that you come out of hiding and serve Him openly in the presence of ALL, believers and unbelievers ALIKE!  If you wish to cling to those things, places, and people you feel MOST comfortable with, and are afraid to BELIEVE, afraid to let go, afraid to step out, how will you ever receive of the Lord?  How will his blessings ever manifest in your life if you’re afraid to move forward and trust Him at his word?

Beloved brothers and sisters,   the lord is calling those who would dare to have the faith of Abraham, who are willing to Come out of their place of comfort, and just as the disciples did WITHOUT QUESTION, WITHOUT DOUBT, would simply BELIEVE, and FOLLOW HIM!

I love you all so very much. Have a blessed week in the Lord and remember: Whatever we do, do ALL for the GLORY of GOD, who ALONE is worthy of the GLORY and the PRAISE!

May the peace of the Lord be with you today and always…….

Khandielese
Daughter & Servant
   of the Lord God