No More Comfort Zone

Relief, reassurance, consolation, encouragement, soothing and gladness are all synonyms of the word comfort. I must say that it feels good to be in any one of those places. Who wouldn’t want some relief in the midst of pain? Who would reject encouragement while in the face of despair? A little gladness would be nice while sadness reigns. Yet, God consistently moves us out of a place of comfort.

When I think of the word zone, I visualize a place. Usually it’s a place where only certain activities are allowed. Some people’s hearts may have different zones. To name a few, a loving zone, a bitter zone, a guilty zone, a forgiving zone, and the all so infamous comfort zone.

The comfort zone is not only a physically place, but a condition of our hearts as well. I really thought that when I emptied my house in the states and boarded the plane to the Dominican Republic that I was leaving my comfort zone. Little did I know that my heart had areas that needed to be re-zoned.

It is amazing how God has used this physical location to mold me more and more into the person He’s ordained for me to be. I’ve come to realize that when we focus on ourselves in any way, we are living in a comfort zone. When our gaze is not solely upon Him, we are in a comfort zone. Oh, how I long to only see Him. Beyond the circumstances that surround me, beyond my own unbelief, beyond the great needs that seem to plague me daily; I long to only see my Father.

As we, the Dominguez family, walk down this narrow road; God has given us victory. We are all growing and accepting the challenges that God places on our path. Just the other day, José asked Jonathan if he wanted him to pray with him for a birthday gift since Jonathan’s 18^thbirthday is coming up. Jonathan sincerely looked at his younger brother and said, “Jo, it is always easy for us to pray for things that we want, but we should instead pray for the lost souls around us. Instead, let’s pray for our church services to be filled with God’s power. Instead, let’s pray for those who are hurting.” José walked away amazed knowing how badly Jonathan wants a rather costly gift for his birthday.

One of our church members recently came over to tell us that her life has been so wonderful since she’s met us. She says that she has peace that she’s never had before. She has just made some difficult decisions in obedience to Christ, yet she is not hard pressed. She’s trusting Him.

Yesterday, we had children waiting at our gate an hour before Kid’s Club started. The neat thing about it is that their scripture memory books were in hand and they had memorized the verses therein! These children are memorizing new scriptures each week. What a joy to see God use His word to work in their lives to bring transformation within their hearts.

Please continue to pray for us. We need wisdom.

Thank you so much for your support,

Vicki-for the Dominguez family