As July 4th came and passed a memory came to mind.  I remembered the previous July 4th.  I can still see me standing in my front yard in Houston with my wife and Gavin watching the fireworks.  I remember the sense of expectancy as the next Sunday would be my first service as a Pastor. But I also felt a twinge of fear. There were many things we were saying goodbye to.  We were saying goodbye to many, many good friends.  We were saying goodbye to good jobs.  And saying hello to a lot of unknowns.

Too often it is the unknown, or rather the fear of the unknown that keeps us from doing what God called us to do.  Stepping out in faith requires you to step out into the unknown.  It’s like walking through someone’s house at night in the pitch dark.  You’re waiting at every step to bump into a coffee table or trip over a toy.  Sometimes steps of faith require us to stumble a bit in the dark.  The key to making it is just to take one step at a time.

God has called each of us to greatness.  But the number one thing to hold us back is our fear of the unknown.  What if I am not good at teaching a Bible study? What if I say the wrong thing when teaching Sunday School? Each of us being held back by our fears affects the church as a whole.  Suddenly as a church we go into the survival mode instead of revival mode.

What caused me to step out and leave the comfortable environment I was in was that I had a hunger for what God wanted to do in my life.  A desire to be used by God.  A dream to become the greatest I could for God.  I believe that God has something greater in store for each of us.  But until we are willing to step out into the unknown we will never realize what it is.

I pray a spirit of revival rests upon each of us.  A spirit that says I’m not sure what the future holds, but I am going to trust God.  A spirit that says I may fail but I’m going to keep trying.  You may not be the best teacher, altar worker, usher, or whatever ministry God has called you to, but the only thing holding you back is you.  Let go.  Let God.  And together let us face our future with faith.