Submitted by Lara Cook
So be
careful how you live. Don’t live like fools, but like those who are wise. Make
the most of every opportunity in these evil days. Ephesians 5:15-16
Some words in the human
language can have multiple meanings - like the word comfort. For me, the word comfort has become one of my
favorite words. While I am enjoying some
of what comfort means to me, I am realizing that sometimes comfort is not my
friend.
This winter has been so
cold. Many mornings I have forced myself
out of bed only to quickly fill my hands with a warm cup of coffee and find a
nice soft place to sit with lots of warm blankets around me, while I wake up
slow and easy. Comfort. I have become very comfortable being
comfortable. Too much of being
comfortable is not a good thing. It is
not good for my health, because I would much rather stay under the warm covers
on the soft couch instead of exercise.
It is bad for my house because I would rather stay on the couch instead
of getting up and doing what needs to be done.
I can make myself think I can justify it because I have rarely ever
relished the act of sitting and just being comfortable and it is amazing. I deserve it, don’t I? It can be amazingly destructive as well. The truth is that in many areas of our lives
we can get too comfortable – in our relationship with God, our spouse, our
parenting, our self-discipline, our eating habits, and many others. It is much better for us to become
comfortable with being uncomfortable.
When we get too
comfortable, we have a hard time leaving that comfort zone when we need
to. God has not called His children to
be comfortable. He has called us to the
trenches, to the streets, to the homeless shelters, and to the unlovable. Many of us are comfortable in our pews,
giving a donation to others that we like to think are “gifted” or “called” to
“that kind” of work. God’s work takes
money sometimes, so it is great that there are people who have been blessed and
are willing to give. It is not great if
we are just too comfortable to do what God is asking us to do because there is
always someone else who will do it. If
we can and we are able and we are called, we should go, even it if it is
uncomfortable.
We can’t grow if we stay
in our comfort zone. We can lose our
drive and purpose and miss opportunities.
Life does not happen in the comfort zone. Limits are what happen in the comfort
zone. Don’t let your life be confined –
or defined – by the parameters of comfort.
What is God calling you to do that you are ignoring because you are
comfortable where you are? Do you need
to get out of your comfort zone to obey the call of God on your life?
Scripture to Claim:
I have
been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in
me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who
loved me and gave himself for me.
Galatians 2:20
