To Venture On Wider Seas

A few months ago, while co-leading a worship event, the Pastor of the church stopped the band to read a prayer...and then invited the room to join him in reading the prayer a second time through.

This prayer stopped me in my tracks.

I came home, googled it immediately, and have had that tab open ever since. (classic Allison.)

At this point in my life (having been following Jesus for more than 20 years) I shouldn't be surprised that God hears and answers prayers. And yet, somehow, it took nearly a month for me to realize that, as things went a little haywire in my life and I began to spin out a bit in the shock of it all, it took nearly a month for me to realize that had actually asked for this to happen.

I prayed that my life would be disturbed. Silly me.

With tears in my eyes, I read these lines. I prayed them deeply. I longed for a life full of dreams too big to be fulfilled by my tiny (read: human) skill-set.

Disturb us, Lord, when We are too well pleased with ourselves,
When our dreams have come true
Because we have dreamed too little,
When we arrived safely
Because we sailed too close to the shore.

Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly,
To venture on wider seas
Where storms will show your mastery;
Where losing sight of land,
We shall find the stars.
We ask You to push back
The horizons of our hopes;
And to push into the future
In strength, courage, hope, and love.

My life has been adequately disturbed in the last few months. And the only reason I'm making it is because I believe, through it all, I will see His mastery.

So, here's to venturing on wider seas.
And all of the fears, tears, and re-readings of Jesus calming the storm and walking on water that come with it.