Last week, we talked about needing to exert energy and be uncomfortable in order for change to occur. Our lives want to keep us in a state of comfort and ease, doing the things we have always done. But doing this doesn’t move us forward. To change our lives, we actually have to change.
The lie we tend to believe is that comfort breeds happiness. If we have no discomfort, if we are never challenged or have to fight for something or if things are always easy, then (and only then) will we be truly joyful.
This is not the case. For whatever reason, human beings thrive off of the fight, thrive off of challenges, thrive off of growth. Growth only occurs when you are in a position that requires you to grow. These places are not always pleasant at the beginning but are almost always worth it in the end.
It is not comfortable to start working out, to get up earlier, to read your Bible, to talk to someone you don’t know, to love people you don’t like, to give up your own time and resources for others. But in those moments of discomfort, where we are afraid or uncomfortable or annoyed or tired, in those moments, we grow.
Through this growth, we become stronger, more courageous, and, oddly enough, filled with more joy
God did not call us to live a life of ease. We weren’t made for it. We were made to be warriors, fighters, and people who are deeply loving those around us. Now, we were also made to be peaceful and to be content in all things. There is a tension between having peace in all circumstances and letting yourself be uncomfortable. Being uncomfortable does not mean putting your physical, spiritual, mental, or emotional health at risk.
Being uncomfortable is being willing to grow when staying as you were would be much easier. The downside of staying exactly as you are now is that, in a year from now or 5 years from now or 10 years from now, you will be exactly where you are today.
Lean into the discomfort, lean into the fight, lean into what God has called you into. For just a little discomfort you can receive bucketful’s of joy.