Picture this: you're sitting next to a girl in English class. She's quiet, but seems kind. You don't have any friends in the class, but you set a goal for yourself to make friends at school this year. It's the perfect opportunity. You want to talk to her, but you're afraid.
"Do it," the tiny voice inside your head says. "I can't," I argue back. "Just say hi," the voice suggests. "No, I'm afraid," I answer. "What's the worst that could happen?" A lot of things, I think to myself as a list of every possible scenario scrolls through my head. I hate myself for making a simple "hello" be so difficult.
We all hear it, the voice inside our head that convinces us to do something or to not. It's our conscience. It's the reasoning and the encouragement to all situations. It's the voice we argue with that talks us into something or talks us out of something. But to me, it's not just a voice inside my head. It's the Holy Spirit.
It's the way God challenges me to go out of my comfort zone to do His work. It's the way God encourages me to do things I would never consider. It's a warm fuzzing inside my chest when I know God is calling me to be obedient to Him over being comfortable.
I've heard it a thousand times, "the best things happen outside of your comfort zone." But there's always an argument in my head with the Holy Spirit between Him calling me to do something and me considering if I should listen. I list off every excuse I can think of. I build myself a list of what ifs- what if they reject me, what if they judge me, what if I look stupid?
But somehow, the Holy Spirit's argument is much greater than mine. The Holy Spirit always wins because a part of me knows He is challenging me with things that are working for the good of the Lord. For a split second when I stop and think about how my tiny action could be helping the kingdom, I know I've lost the battle in my head with Him. I know that my fears and my long list of what ifs are nothing in the grand scheme of doing something for Christ.
That split second of stopping and considering how my actions could benefit the kingdom is all it takes. A second of realization, a second of knowing my security is in Christ, another second of trusting Him in it, a second of believing He delights in me just trying, and a final second to actually be obedient and do it. That's it. Five whole seconds in total. Five seconds of courage in the Lord for a lifetime of eternal goodness.
The Lord delights in us just trying to do something for the good of Him. In all things Christ is glorified - this means He's glorified when we fail too! What a relief to think about. He just wants us to try. He just wants us to take those five seconds of courage to try to do what He's calling us to.
If I've learned anything in my walk with Christ, it's that when the warm fuzzy feeling inside my chest starts to burn and the little voice says, "do it," I don't stop to argue. I don't build my list of what ifs, but I listen to the Holy Spirit and go without fear of the outcome. I trust the Lord will work all things for His good, even when I fail, and that is the most important thing.
