Comfort Zones/Strongholds

(Thanks to Pete who lead cell when I was in the States and prepared these notes)

Galatians 1:13-15 (NKJ)
“For you have heard of my former conduct in Judaism, how I persecuted the Church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it. And I advanced in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries in my own nation, being more exceedingly zealous for the traditions of my fathers. But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mothers womb and called me through His grace.”

Every time I’ve read this before, I’ve always thought that Paul was talking about how God called him and had a plan for his life (Just like he has for us). How He knew what He wanted Paul to do before he was born, which was preach the gospel to the Gentiles.

The NLT and NIV versions say:
15 But even before I was born, God chose me and called me by his marvelous grace. (NLT)
15 But when God, who set me apart from birth[a] and called me by his grace. (NIV)

But God spoke to me about how his ‘mothers womb’ could also be Judaism. It’s like Judaism was his comfort zone, his place of safety and protection. But that Paul was in bondage to it, he was bound by the law and the religious traditions of his day. His whole life was controlled by the strict adherence to the law. But He felt safe in that structure and knew where he stood, he knew that in the eyes of his peers he was the best of them. He says he was exceedingly zealous for the traditions of his fathers. Comfort zones can hold us in as much bondage as strongholds.

So was Paul’s aggressive response due to feeling threatened by something that challenged his comfort zone? Was it fear that motivated him destroy the church, which threatened his comfort zone? Was it his feeling of superiority and pride and his sense of tradition?

It wasn’t until that He had his supernatural encounter with God and accepted Christ and experienced that freedom. That He was able to break out of his comfort zone and enter into the call of God on his life.

Questions

1. What are your comfort zones?
2. What are your reactions to things when your comfort zone is threatened?
3. What motivates us?
4. How/Why do they keep us from the call of God on our lives?
5. What can we do to stretch our comfort zones?