“…often, stepping outside of your comfort zone is not careless irresponsibility, but a necessary act of obedience.” ~Andy Stanley, Fields of Gold

Entertainment, Music, Recording Artists,  Sports, Theme Parks, comedy, television, movies, art, graphic arts, business leadership, politics—what do all of these have in common? For a majority of people these things are spectator sports.

For the most part, being a spectator in life is very comfortable and very easy. You go to a concert and have fun. You turn the radio or TV on or off. You go to a theme park and enjoy the environment, rides, entertainment. You laugh at a comedian’s jokes, look a beautiful art, admire and watch leaders, and enjoy a great flick every once and a while. That very comfortable and easy life style has moved into work and life. Most people, most of the time, are told to watch, not to lead, to follow, not to create.

When you give a gift, it is much different that receiving the gift. The gift giver puts thought into the gift, spends time and money to get the gift, and then waits to see the reaction from the receiver.

When you decide not to be a spectator, you begin to involve risk and failure in your life. In my life I have encountered people that believed that I had taken on careless irresponsibility, when in fact I believed that I was taking a step of obedience and faith. Some have accused me of taking too big of a risk. People were all to ready to point out the hole in my jeans or the flaw in my reasoning.

I was reminded of this when I was watching the Falcons play in the Divisional Championship. It’s late in the 3^rd Quarter and fans (spectators) were all too happy to boo, fill their statuses with boos and disenchantment. Spectators are all too happy to switch bandwagons if they find something better to follow.

But most spectators will ask, “Why be anything else? I am happy in my comfort zone. I enjoy my schedule and being a cog in the machine.”

Then there are those who have put themselves on the line, stood up, and stood out, did what people thought to be crazy or impossible. The people making dreams reality. You know those crazy ones and misfit, the people who see the world differently. They are all asking, why would I ever do it differently? Why be the spectator?