"You Can't Pursue Comfort & God's will"

Tonight during my run I was listening to yesterdays message from Revolve Church. It knocked me off my feet and convicted me in a way like no other. This was the third message in a series of four sermons called Idol factory.  So far our pastor has gone over the idol of control, the idol of approval, and the one I listened to tonight; the idol of comfort. Can we fully be obedient to God and lead fully comfortable lives? God often asks us and pushes us to step out of our comfort zones for the sake of His kingdom. Because how we can we share the gospel if we don't leave our own comfy couches in our cozy little houses..in our pajamas (comfy pajamas)? 

And how does this bring glory to God? Usually God asks us to do something so HE can work through us to show His glory and to show how big and how awesome He is. If I was so comfortable doing something I think sometimes I can get pretty prideful saying "I totally got this...I don't even need anyone's help." 
This series has made me realize that my daily life is usually all about ME. And it makes me sick to my stomach saying that. But I often go throughout the day trying to avoid as much stress and things that annoy me or make me feel uncomfortable or that are OUT. OF. MY. CONTROL. (Idol factory week 2). 

And it's making me realize that I've had this perfect little picture laid out of how our foster to adopt journey is going to be. It's quite a comfortable picture in my head. It looks something like this in Britt's world: 

We get a call for a newborn baby girl that is on the way to a fast tract adoption. She joins our family, we adopt her, life is perfect..the end.

Now I know that this happens in some cases. And if that is how our adoption story goes then awesome. But what if it doesn't? What if we fall in love with baby girl and then have to hand her over to her birth mother 12 months later? Knowing that baby girl might not be going back into a situation that we think may not be the best for her. How comfortable will I feel then handing her back into her birth mothers arms after she was our daughter for a year? Honestly I really haven't thought about how I felt about this till now. But it makes me totally stinking uncomfortable. I'm not going to like it. In fact it is probably going to wreck me to pieces to say goodbye to a child that is in our family, but I know that my God will be there to pick me back up. 

 So WHY in the world are we doing this? Why am I making myself, my kids, our family, vulnerable to potential hurt and loss?

Because these children have been through more hurt and loss then we will ever know and because God has a plan for their lives. I can't see it yet, but His plan is awesome and bigger then I can grasp. I have to be willing to get uncomfortable for the sake of His kingdom, for the least of these. Because the fact is foster care is full of hurting people. 

Not only are there hurting children going through trauma, abuse, neglect, and loss, but there are birth mothers and birth fathers who are hurting and have filled voids with drugs, abuse, neglect, and other situations which has not made it safe for their children to live with them. 

There is nothing easy, safe, in control or comfortable about this at all. I understand that not everyone is called to do this, but God has called our family to stand in the gap for these children and be their family, love them, pray over them, while we have them, and maybe have them forever. 

I titled this post a quote from the sermon...."you can't pursue comfort and God's will." Because God's will is not always what I want. God's will is that...HIS will. Not Britt's will. Jesus said, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23). 
I know that it's not going to be easy, but Jesus didn't say following Him was going to be. I do know..it's going to be worth it.

Idol Factory week 3: The Idol of Comfort can be listened to by clicking HERE.