I totally stole that line from a Hallmark movie I watched last night. I love it! I know in my own life, that phrase is exactly true. What I’ve discovered is that living on the edge of what feels safe is exactly where God has called me to live. I used to play it safe, fearing I might fail. Now, I’m doing the craziest things and really putting myself out there. I still might fail. That reality hasn’t gone away. What I do know is this: if I do fail, I’ll just try again. I’ve tasted this walk on the wild side, this adventurous life with Jesus. I can’t go back now. Life would be too boring there in the safety-lands.

What does this have to do with you, you might wonder. I guess I’ll just keep it simple and ask you: are you on the great adventure or are you just mundanely living out life until your time comes and you kick the bucket? Will your life have mattered beyond yourself and your immediate family? Do you follow your God given dreams and purposes? If not, why? What’s stopping you?

I’m not suggesting that everyone has some public purpose, but I can guarantee you that you have a place in the kingdom, a place of service that will allow you to touch lives. You may be ultra-gifted with teaching pre-school Sunday school. You may help with the youth. Both are callings that will take you to the borderlands of what feels safe. To commit to service can be scary. Honestly, service and ministry complicates what could otherwise be an easy life. Touching lives is often messy. But oh what a reward that mess will offer in the long run, both to you and to those you serve. You’ll never know the blessing until you’ve given it a try.

So begin life today by stepping out of your comfort zone. Hey! It’s VBS season. Start there. Say Y-E-S to V-B-S. (Sorry, that was a song one year.)

Recently, I was reading about how Jesus called Lazarus out of the tomb. Familiar story, but I went away from that encounter with a fresh question in my mind. It was as if the Spirit asked me if I am still wearing my grave clothes: those attitudes, behaviors, and lifestyles from when I was dead. The answer? Yes, I am. I still wear some things that belong to my old dead life. Certainly not as many these days, but some, and some are too many. The fact is: I don’t have to. So why do I?

Oftentimes, I don’t even identify those things as belonging to my dead way of life. Ways I used to get things accomplished, such as manipulating a situation to make something happen the way I want it to, I can give that up. If I truly believe that God has my life under control, I don’t have to manipulate or control every situation. I can rest in the fact that He’s got this – whatever this is.

I have other hidden ways, those things that are private and don’t need to be shared. We all have those. They belong to the old, dead me. God occasionally shines light on those dark places, not with condemnation but with the assurance that there’s a better way, His way. Everything that represents the dead part of me is only a hindrance. When will I get that?

Here’s my mind-blowing revelation from those scriptures I read. Jesus said, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.” Notice Jesus didn’t tell Lazarus to take off his own grave clothes. Lazarus was bound and unable. It was by Jesus’ word that the grave clothes were removed. Same with me. Obviously, these remaining things I now call grave clothes are something I’m not able to remove alone. I’m bound by them. I need Him, through His Word, to remove them.

So I ask, are you still wearing your grave clothes? Give it some thought. Respond here on the blog or on Facebook. I would love to open a conversation. What are those things from our dead way of life that we allow to linger in our new life?

That’s what I feel like these days. I feel as if there’s some wall in front of me that I can’t seem to break through. My prayers feel hindered and I feel isolated, and honestly, I feel pretty forsaken. For as many years as I’ve walked closely with Jesus, I have never experienced this specifically. I’ve had days when I might feel more distant, but this season is significant, as if some spiritual darkness is hovering above me, maybe even surrounding me. I can’t break through.

Since I’m not the only one to ever have this sense, I’m perfectly comfortable in putting this out there. I’m stuck and don’t know how to take the next step forward. I want to be transparent while blogging and I know if I only share the mountain top moments then I’ll never truly relate to my readers. Life is hard, struggles are common, and sorrows are real for us all. So if I can’t share in my sorrow, what’s the point? If I can’t be real then I can’t have a real impact on people.

Feel. Notice in the first paragraph how many times I said feel? I know the heart lies; feelings lie. I know God hears my prayers, I’m not alone, and I’m not forsaken. I know that. Just because I feel that way doesn’t make it true. Man! If we could only get that one truth about feelings we would all be in better shape spiritually. What I feel isn’t true, but I’m still struggling, and I still need a breakthrough. Or maybe rather than a breakthrough I need a hand up.

Recently, while visiting with my precious friend who has a critically ill son, I gave her a verse that came to mind. “With my God I can scale a wall.” (Psalm 18:29)That’s what she’s looking at with her son, this huge wall of recovery ahead. What was really interesting, though, was that the very next morning, in my daily devotion, I was led to a parallel location of that exact verse. 2 Samuel 22 is almost an exact do-over of Psalm 18. So what are the chances, huh? That’s not a common verse, so for me to quote it one day and then be led to it the following day was no coincidence. That verse was for me too.

I’ve been looking to break through a wall when I simply need to go over it. I’ve been waiting for some explanation of why the wall is there and how to dismantle it. Instead, I need to scale the wall. I need to trust that this will make sense someday and still keep moving forward. I hate being stuck. I hate lack of progress. So with my God, I will scale this wall. I will get back to the basic truths: He loves me. He will never leave me nor forsake me. He intends good for me. He has a plan. I need to trust. Those are all very simple statements, yet collectively, they are the very foundation of my faith and life.

With my God, I can scale this wall.