Come On Out!

Posted on January 11, 2010 by Ronald T. Brown, Ph.D.

“Do not stay in the stronghold. Go into the land of Judah…” (1 Samuel 22:5)

The Bible tells the story when the young man, David (the guy who killed the giant Golliath as a teenager), was later in life hiding out in a cave near Adullum, along with about 200 of his fighting men. David was in the process of fleeing King Saul, the ruler of Israel at that time. Saul was on the warpath seeking to find and kill David - and David was content to just hide out in a mountain cave and wait things out.

But one day, a prophet of God came to David and told him that it was time for him to leave the stronghold and go up into the land of Judah. That God wanted him to quite hiding, trust Him, and venture in the direction of David’s future and calling.

* When life gets tough, or outside forces like the economy beat us down, it is easy to just want to ride things out safely tucked away in some cave. But God did not call us to be cave dwellers – He calls us to be willing to move out to claim the work and calling He has placed on our lives.

What are you hesitating to try? What are you fearful of venturing out to capture? How is your comfort zone preventing you from reaching the summit of a dream? Don’t let your comfort zone back you into a prison of your own making. Instead, step out. Lean into your future and embrace the risk of stepping out toward your promised land.

(Adapted from a devotional by Os Hillman)