Onyx Cave at Eureka Springs, Arkansas
A few years ago when we visited Eureka Springs, Arkansas, one of the places we toured was Onyx Cave—a small, but unique delight.
The tour is self-guided and fairly easy to navigate, and the folks there are very helpful and courteous. Families with children and teens would enjoy it.
Now, a word of caution.
Don’t venture down inside this cave or any other cave, if you’re claustrophobic—which of course—I AM.
I know. What was I even thinking?
I guess every now and then, I believe it’s good to step outside our comfort zones. We don’t know what we might miss in life if we remain stationary, never to try new things.
I’m not talking about tackling careless, random acts of nonsense. I’m speaking about facing those deep-seated fears (or even some desires) just for the sake of saying, “Hey, I did it and it wasn’t so bad! I bet I could pull it off again!”
That’s a little how I feel as I write. Sometimes, in my own little solitary world, I let the characters I create step out of their comfort zones for me. Pretty creative, huh? (Now—when I have to do it, that’s a whole ‘nother ball of wax!)
I have learned, though, that stepping out of our comfort zones isn’t so bad.
Coming out of “stealth mode” (AKA comfort zones):
- Increases our faith
- Introduces us to new friends
- Gives us confidence/Instills courage
- Allows us to face our fears
- Shows us new experiences
- Reveals our character
- Teaches us to be better prayer warriors
- Sabotages self-doubt
- Encourages others
- Fosters growth
And I’ve learned, too, that it’s imperative to use a flashlight to guide me. My “flashlight” is Jesus.
I hope He’s yours, too!
Are you a cave fan?
How do you step out of your comfort zone?
***
Blessings Always,
Comments 5
There are a lot of benefits to stretching ourselves, as you listed. And you nailed them. I got on my first airplane a couple years ago. Beforehand, I feared motion sickness would kick in, what if it WAS a claustrophobic time (I’d experienced that wedged between two people in the backseat of a car once!), so many what-ifs. My daughter’s courage helped me. She is much like me, in the aforementioned issues, but God put on her heart to adopt a child from China, and her first flight was half-way around the world. That girl, who was never going to get on an airplane, trusted that this was God’s mission, and he’d take care of her. That made it easier for me to fly when my doctor told me I needed a bed in the back of the car, or be strapped to the roof rack for a long road trip. Gotta love a doctor with a sense of humor!
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Patti, I always smile when I read your replies! You ARE a jewel!
And we, too, have loved ones that traveled around the globe (twice) for their precious daughters. Yes, when God gives us a mission, there’s no going back.
I have had to face claustrophobia in the past. I had huge issues with wearing my gas mask and mopp gear while I was active duty A.F. The mopp uniform is a heavy duty hazmat suit that goes over your BDU’s with a hood that goes over the sides of your
gas mask. Talk about panic. By the time my 4 years were over, I was able to wear
full mopp with my gas mask for 5 whole minutes, which was quite a feat. Of course,
in a live world situation, I would have been dead due to the time it would take me to put it on, while talking myself down and praying the whole time. This was one of the reasons I didn’t think I was cut out for a military career, but I was thankful for the four years I was able to serve. 🙂
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Tanya, first, you have my deepest respect and admiration for serving our great country! THANK YOU!
And second, heavenly days, to wear a mopp uniform?! Gal, if you can do that, you can accomplish anything!
Thanks, Cynthia. It was a great experience. I grew
personally in so many ways during that time, one
of which was the mopp gear experience. Yes, after
doing facing the fear that the mopp and mask was
going to completely cut off my air supply and cook
me to death (a bit dramatic?), I sure I can do all
things through Christ. Maybe even face my fear
of all things that creep and crawl. 🙂