It is impossible to have adventure inside your “comfort zone!”

I freely confess that I love to have adventure and I’ve discovered that every day can offer adventure when you are in the Kingdom of God. In fact, you can develop a lifestyle of adventure by believing that Abba delights himself in your curiosity and your passion for the thrill of discovery, and he is quite willing to support you as you venture outside your comfort zone to explore the “unknown.”

Boredom is a condition that is often brought about by decisions to “play it safe.” The vibrant life of an excited Christian is the opposite of boring, and quite often leads to encounters with the miraculous and/or to situations that necessitate the partnership of God to avoid potential failure or even disaster!  

Boredom is indeed a choice and not something that just “happens” to you. On the other hand, true adventure can “chase you down” when you decide to jump into the unknown or, in other words, to say “Goodbye!” to your comfort zone. The reward(s) can be quite thrilling and often beyond your expectation, since the very nature of sonship in the Kingdom promises new vistas of adventure that unfold even as you explore just outside your comfort zone.  

In other words, the adventures that await are often not yet dreamed of but seem to escalate right along with your boldness of exploration. If you are fighting timidity the good news is that you can win! The realization that Abba wants to show himself strong on your behalf, and that he delights in those discoveries that can only come through trust in him, will enable you to boldly explore outside of your comfort zone. 

The very nature of adventure with God has the (sometimes) annoying result that your comfort zone keeps getting bigger, because the very thing that thrilled you during exploration now becomes more “normal” or expected once experienced. Such is the life of an adventurous son of God. You must agree to run faster than the speed at which your comfort zone expands. If your comfort zone “captures” you, be sure to ask Abba to catapult you ahead of the zone boundary. He is quite capable of doing just that, and often doesn’t wait for you to ask!  

I think I like it when Abba “throws me into the deep end” of the spiritual “pool.” Quickly learning to “swim” is lots of fun! 

Jesus walked the earth with extreme confidence, and so can you!

It is unlikely that Jesus was born with this sense of certainty, since he had emptied himself of his divine power [Philippians 2:7] and, for example, likely cried as an infant when he was hungry or needed other attention from his mother.  

I believe that Jesus gained his extreme confidence as he grew in the knowledge of his Father’s will and faithfulness. Since he is our “older brother” and we are becoming like him [Romans 8:29], his example is one that we can follow as we surrender to the work of the Holy Spirit. In my online course entitled “The Belief Advantage,” I outline five key actions that we can adopt as part of our lifestyle that will help us gain more Jesus-level confidence.

One of these actions I refer to as “Eat risk for lunch!” Let me explain …;

During his ministry Jesus is not recorded as ever saying “Maybe?” or crafting a “Plan B.” Rather, he knew his Father’s will so well, that he could say that he only did what he saw his Father doing, and he also knew that he could count on his Father’s support and the power of the Holy Spirit. So, it is unlikely that he experienced “risk.”   

While we are gaining intimacy with the Father and his will [Romans 12:2], we also have His support [2 Chronicles 16:9] and the power of the Holy Spirit. This means that as we grow to become more like Christ, we can “eat risk for lunch” instead of “managing” or “minimizing” risk. In other words, make it your goal to eliminate risk by following the example of Jesus in gaining deep intimacy with your Abba.

You will bring much joy to your Father as you gain “The Belief Advantage!”

I have a “game” that I play with Abba: Whenever he astounds me with the blessing of seeing a “new” type of miracle, I know that if it happens again, I won’t be surprised. So, I purpose to ask Dad, with hands playfully on my hips and chin upturned, “That was awesome, Abba – now what are you going to do to surprise me?” My tone of voice has the edge of a “challenge” posed to him, the “All-powerful One.”

You may be thinking that I’m inviting a “lightning strike” at that moment, but as I said, it is a game that Abba and I play often. He astounds me, and I challenge him to astound me some more, especially in a new way.  

My posture is far from “irreverent.” Quite the contrary, when I believe him for even more amazing displays of his loving power, he is pleased with my belief and delights himself in the “audacity” of his son. It is one of my ways of enjoying our relationship in its extreme “safety,” and he knows I’m incredibly blessed by his “follow-through” on the challenge.  

Here is a key lesson from peering into the Father’s heart for decades:   

Abba is blessed when his children are blessed! 

By playfully challenging my Daddy through making it “harder” for him to surprise me, we both delight in this ever-escalating expression of our love for one another.

My encouragement for you: Try it; He’ll like it!

I think most passionate (is there any other kind, really?) Christians are eager to keep the commands of Jesus. 

But there is a very important (is there any other kind, really?) command Jesus gave his disciples that we cannot keep!

Let me explain.   

On the night before he was crucified, Jesus shared many important lessons, predictions, and commands with his disciples. One of those that is recorded by John:

“A new command I give you:  Love one another.”  [John 13:34a]

Until recently, this verse had puzzled me for several years, because I didn’t understand why Jesus called this a new command. Indeed the command to love one another had been given by God even in the Old Testament and Jesus himself quoted it when asked by a Pharisee, an expert in the law, 

“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”  [Matthew 22:36-40]

So, why did Jesus call the command in John 13:34 a new command? Let’s read on:

“As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”  [John 13:34b – 35]

The new feature in the command to love one another is that we must do so in the way that Jesus loves us! Jesus-level love is not possible in our own strength — we must have the Holy Spirit in order to help us love like Jesus loves!

And when we do, the whole world will know it – Jesus-level love gets noticed!

Have you ever sent this question heavenward: “Father, when will it be my turn?” Perhaps many of your friends are receiving “blessings” but your hands feel like they are remaining empty?

Our Father’s tender heart understands our self-focus, but he displays amazing love as he helps us to mature and grow in “others-focus.” As we become more like Jesus, self-focus becomes less evident and we gain more of the attitude that he modeled. A wonderful fruit awaits this maturation, because it paves the way for sharing in the extreme joy of Jesus as we join in loving others as he does [John 13:34-35]. 

Becoming more “others-focused” will both challenge you and encourage you to realize that you are not in isolation from the rest of the Body of Christ but in fact are becoming one with them. The incredible unity that Jesus prayed for [John 17:20-23] has at its core the inter-connectedness of our lives as interwoven “threads” that the Master Weaver is fashioning into a beautiful “tapestry.”

So, whatever blessing one of us receives or experiences can be a wonderful blessing to all of us, and vice-versa. As this revelation “takes hold” in your thinking, it will become increasingly and progressively clear that your focus on others actually includes self- focus! As a result, you will discover that it has actually been your turn all along!

The power of belief is much greater than most of us realize, let alone experience. Even though there is remarkable power in your spoken word, as a son of God, there is far more power that springs forth from what you believe in your heart. 

Belief is not just assenting to what is possible; it is the causative agent that makes things possible! The world around you must “shift” when you make the choice to believe! [Mark 9:23]

Yes, belief is indeed a choice that you make – it is not something that just “happens” to you.  Abba has given you a measure of faith, but what you do with it is dependent on your choices to believe.

The incredible gift from Abba that we call “free will” is a direct and stellar example of his desire to give you only “good and perfect” gifts [James 1:17]. When you exercise this gift to make good choices, Abba is blessed beyond measure. He knows that you will be blessed because of the good choices and this in turn is what truly blesses him.  

So, choose to believe and watch the “impossible” become possible! It is your divine re-birthright!

Your Father has entrusted you with exactly the right amount of influence in the lives of other people, whether they be members of your family, your church, your workplace, or your nation. 

He invites you to invest your influence by entrusting others who look to you for training, mentorship, leadership, etc. What can you entrust to them? Influence with those that they lead.

In other words, be brave enough to delegate tasks and responsibilities that will reveal the faithfulness of those you lead. When they invest influence well, you will share in the joy that Abba has in finding you faithful with your own influence.  

This is an example of the reward described in the Parable of the Talents [Matthew 25:14-30]. Not only will you be trusted with greater influence, but you will also discover that incredible joy awaits you as you see your followers faithfully “invest it forward.”  

Abba wants to bless you with well-timed “escalations” of your influence in the world around you. His trust in you is delightfully paired with your trust in him! As he helps you “steward” your influence, the wonderful outcome is more of Christ’s nature in you.  

You, along with your faithful followers, will discover that:

Genuine influence is not a “badge” of superiority; rather it is a fruit of trust.

I was blessed as a new Christian with supernatural experiences before naysayers could “prevent” them by sowing unbelief! One of my favorites occurred in the first year of my walk with Jesus and it had a profound impact on me, with just one of the fruits being the revelation that the Lord actually enjoys his creation.

Not just us, but also the universe he created for us.

I was visiting a popular amusement park, Six Flags Magic Mountain in Southern California, with a few of my friends, just after a new roller-coaster ride had been added to the many thrills in this amazing park. Its name was “Viper” and as we approached the long line of thrill-seekers waiting to try out this new ride, just the sight of the very tall track got our hearts beating faster!

My buddies “chickened out” with the excuse that the line was too long, but I decided to brave the scary contraption and got in the line by myself as they went off to find more tame adventure. After two hours in the slowly moving line, I finally found myself seated alone and buckled in tight in a “car” at about the middle of the roller coaster “train.”  

Just looking up at the initial steep portion of the track caused me to grip the safety bar across my lap so tightly that my knuckles turned white! Just before we began the initial ascent, I heard laughter from somewhere. I turned around to see if it came from the people in the seat behind me, but their knuckles were just as white as mine!

As we pulled out of the station and began our nerve-wracking ascent of the first hill, I heard more laughter. “Maybe it is coming from the speakers at the station,” I thought. Perhaps some sadistic operator is laughing at our fear? But half-way up the first hill I heard the laughter again, seemingly from right next to me in my car. Then I realized that it was Jesus laughing as he “sat” next to me in my car, unseen but very much heard by me!

As we went over the top of the first hill and began to accelerate through loops and corkscrews, Jesus “screamed” with delight right along with me (and everyone else on the ride), right up until we finished the incredibly thrilling ride and decelerated into the station to disembark. I let out a sigh of relief, and heard Jesus do the same!

As “we” began to leave the platform with the other surviving riders, Jesus said to me, “Let’s go again – this time in the front car.” So, we got in line again, this time for the front car, and eventually got buckled in after 2½ hours. This ride was very “different” because of the placement of the front car ahead of the “center-of-gravity” of the train. More screaming by Jesus and I accompanied this very cool thrill of a ride.

As we finished that second ride, Jesus said to me, “Let’s go again, this time in the back car of the train.” After another long wait in the line, we experienced more screaming together on this altogether different ride behind the center-of-gravity of the roller-coaster train. I realized that Jesus knew that I knew these three rides would be quite different because of the physics that governs the roller-coaster during the course of traversing the convoluted track. [My physics Ph.D. was proving useful!]

Occasionally, some of the eventual religious naysayers that heard my story of the roller-coaster rides with Jesus asked me, “Why would Jesus be screaming on a roller-coaster with you?” My answer was always the same:   

“Since Jesus invented gravity, I think he is entitled to enjoy it!”

I am quite sure that Abba enjoyed watching his sons having fun together at Magic Mountain.   

Many years ago, one of my close friends shared a deep longing in her heart. This mature woman of God exclaimed, “Steve, I can hardly wait to get to heaven; then it will just be me and Jesus!” I knew she was looking forward to focusing on that most intimate of relationships, the one with the Lover of her soul, the One who has captivated her heart.   

But I was troubled by her statement, and thought to myself, “What about the rest of us that will be in heaven? Surely we must “count for something.” I was surprised by the seeming “exclusion” of her brothers and sisters, in part because I held a different expectation of eventual heavenly pursuits.  

I, too, am enthralled by Jesus and want to get to know him more intimately, and l look forward to that intimacy growing forever in eternity. But I also know that Jesus resides in every believer, and through each of them he displays a different “facet” of himself. So, if I want to get to know Jesus as thoroughly as possible (a continuous adventure!), then I will need to get to know every believer in heaven with growing intimacy. I will want to “see” Jesus in every brother and sister and rejoice in the diversity of expression of his nature through the multitude of brethren.  In other words:

Getting to know Jesus involves getting to know all of YOU!

Although this may seem like a daunting enterprise, namely getting to know everyone in heaven at an intimate level, the good news is that we will all have as long as we need to do so! We can’t “use up” time in eternity; there is always an infinite amount of time left to continue to pursue our passionate quest to get to know each other.   

This delightful adventure of growing in intimacy with each other will never end – it is birthed deep in the heart of your Abba! It is one of the infinite blessings that await you because of his incredible love for you.