“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” Isaiah 43:18-19
Stepping out of my comfort zone, I said yes. But not before I had weighed the opportunity over in my mind for a while. Would this be the only time I’d be able to do this? Would I regret this if I said no? I could hear my mother’s voice in my head saying “He [or in this case, she] who hesitates is lost.” Walking over to a spry, fun-loving new friend, I asked if there was still a seat left. She said there was. I went for it.
While I had flown in airplanes of all sizes over the years, from two-seater, single props to jumbo double-decker jets, I had never ridden in a helicopter before. My perception that helicopters seem to crash more often than airplanes had kept my feet firmly on the ground, until the chance arose that day to travel along the Côte d’Azur from Monaco to Nice. I convinced my fearful self that it would be OK, even fun, and the risk of crashing was low. As I imagined the magnificent views of the Mediterranean Sea and its coastline, I decided this was not a venture I wanted to pass up. A little while later, we were skimming along the surface of the glistening turquoise water. Sitting in the front seat, the floor-to-ceiling windows gave the unnerving illusion of flying without the aid of the helicopter. The sea felt so close I could almost touch it. The views were spectacular as we passed Monaco, Villefranche-sur-Mer, and Nice before landing at the airstrip just south of the city. This exhilarating ride ended all too soon!
How many times do we pass up opportunities because of fear? Does leaving our comfort zone seem too daunting or at the very least, too inconvenient? Do we ever regret not saying yes when a situation presents itself that would be in our best interests to take? How many times do we hesitate and then lose the chance presented?
In Isaiah 43, our key verses 18-19 tell us not to dwell on the past where regrets of missed opportunities and wrong choices live. God does work on our behalf, creating new things out of the old, making ways for us even when the path has detoured or dead-ended. These verses are the prophet Isaiah’s words from God to the Israelites who, under Babylonian captivity, needed hope. God promised renewal and a new order of life in the form of His Son, Jesus, the long-awaited Messiah of the Jews.
Jesus is our hope, too. In the journey of life, where there are opportunities both taken and missed, we can rest in the fact that God has our best in mind, that He goes with us, and He is sovereign. Stepping into a God-given moment gives us peace and joy as we follow Him. While we might miss out if we hesitate, all is not lost with Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith, who uses opportunities and regrets to build our character and to give us hope. He can take the regrets of lost chances and use them to teach us how to step through doors He opens next time. If there are regrets due to unwise choices of stepping through the wrong door, God can take those, too, and redeem them, weaving them into the fabric of our lives to teach us who He wants us to be. With God, all opportunities are full of grace.
Dear God, help me step out of my comfort zone and into the opportunities You provide. I’m so grateful that even if I hesitate too long out of fear, You still lead and guide me, opening other doors along the way. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
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Text and photograph copyright © 2017 by Dawn Dailey. All rights reserved. Photo of Nice, France, from the top of the Bellanda Tower.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™
Stepping out of my comfort zone, I said yes. But not before I had weighed the opportunity over in my mind for a while. Would this be the only time I’d be able to do this? Would I regret this if I said no? I could hear my mother’s voice in my head saying “He [or in this case, she] who hesitates is lost.” Walking over to a spry, fun-loving new friend, I asked if there was still a seat left. She said there was. I went for it.
While I had flown in airplanes of all sizes over the years, from two-seater, single props to jumbo double-decker jets, I had never ridden in a helicopter before. My perception that helicopters seem to crash more often than airplanes had kept my feet firmly on the ground, until the chance arose that day to travel along the Côte d’Azur from Monaco to Nice. I convinced my fearful self that it would be OK, even fun, and the risk of crashing was low. As I imagined the magnificent views of the Mediterranean Sea and its coastline, I decided this was not a venture I wanted to pass up. A little while later, we were skimming along the surface of the glistening turquoise water. Sitting in the front seat, the floor-to-ceiling windows gave the unnerving illusion of flying without the aid of the helicopter. The sea felt so close I could almost touch it. The views were spectacular as we passed Monaco, Villefranche-sur-Mer, and Nice before landing at the airstrip just south of the city. This exhilarating ride ended all too soon!
How many times do we pass up opportunities because of fear? Does leaving our comfort zone seem too daunting or at the very least, too inconvenient? Do we ever regret not saying yes when a situation presents itself that would be in our best interests to take? How many times do we hesitate and then lose the chance presented?
In Isaiah 43, our key verses 18-19 tell us not to dwell on the past where regrets of missed opportunities and wrong choices live. God does work on our behalf, creating new things out of the old, making ways for us even when the path has detoured or dead-ended. These verses are the prophet Isaiah’s words from God to the Israelites who, under Babylonian captivity, needed hope. God promised renewal and a new order of life in the form of His Son, Jesus, the long-awaited Messiah of the Jews.
Jesus is our hope, too. In the journey of life, where there are opportunities both taken and missed, we can rest in the fact that God has our best in mind, that He goes with us, and He is sovereign. Stepping into a God-given moment gives us peace and joy as we follow Him. While we might miss out if we hesitate, all is not lost with Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith, who uses opportunities and regrets to build our character and to give us hope. He can take the regrets of lost chances and use them to teach us how to step through doors He opens next time. If there are regrets due to unwise choices of stepping through the wrong door, God can take those, too, and redeem them, weaving them into the fabric of our lives to teach us who He wants us to be. With God, all opportunities are full of grace.
Dear God, help me step out of my comfort zone and into the opportunities You provide. I’m so grateful that even if I hesitate too long out of fear, You still lead and guide me, opening other doors along the way. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Want to subscribe to future posts? Click here.
Text and photograph copyright © 2017 by Dawn Dailey. All rights reserved. Photo of Nice, France, from the top of the Bellanda Tower.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™
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