Uncomfortable

This blog/note is for everyone who has ever struggled to “fit in” or to be accepted and have the approval of others, or who in great error has believed that if we aren’t constantly changing and improving in some way, then our growth is somehow stunted or mediocre at best. Oh, my precious friends, please read on. I hope you will chew on each thought and pray for the Lord to reveal His own thoughts to you about His goal and plan for YOU, unique to you and designed by Him to bring about everlasting real change (a new heart)… one that beats for Him and His glory, by His grace alone.

What if the goal of this life is NOT to constantly change or improve your marriage, your spouse, your job, your health, your child, your ministry, or YOURSELF? But instead it is so that you are to GET uncomfortable? To BE uncomfortable, or even quite possibly to STAY uncomfortable?

Not to sound cliché, but we have all heard the saying “life isn’t lived on the mountain top, it’s lived in the valleys, that’s where the real lessons are learned.” Well, I beg to differ! Not because I live in the mountains, but because some of the toughest terrain and most difficult paths are as we travel along life’s road, searching for, or climbing toward that “mountain-top” experience we all long for. You know the one, a view from “the top”; a sense of accomplishment that we have somehow “arrived”and we can then rest in our laurels and pat ourselves on the back for a job well done. Yet, when I study God’s word and explore the truths He engraves on my heart, that is not what I sense Him saying to me. Longing for the Lord of Lords and King of Kings, my Heavenly Father’s approval, to hear HIM say “well done, though good and faithful servant” – well, now, that is something else entirely! And I am even more sure that it will not come about the way that “I”think it will. More often than not, my most valuable lessons are learned on those difficult mountain-climbing paths, in ways I would never have planned, dreamed or wished. But, OH, the sweet fellowship that exists in the very presence of a loving Savior and Redeemer who understands our struggles (Hebrews 4:15)!

When I look through the history of God’s people as outlined in the Bible, I see example after example of regular, ordinary folks (just like you and me) who were UNCOMFORTABLE. They had to leave their family behind (Abraham), they were thrown into a Lion’s den (Daniel), they seemed drunk (Hannah), and they ate bugs (John the Baptist). They were former prostitutes (Rahab), they were married to a prostitute (Hosea), they were teenagers (Mary), they were carpenters (Joseph), they were lied about (Joseph), wrongly imprisoned (Paul) they lost everything (Job), they were adulterers (David), drunk (Moses) and murderers (Paul). They came from all walks of life – a tax collector (Matthew), a fisherman (James), a tent maker (Paul). They doubted (Thomas), they denied Him (Peter), they were jealous and bitter (Rachel) and they disobeyed (Sampson). And yet, God used them, and He used them mightily… but first, they had to get “uncomfortable”. They were idol-worshippers (i.e. addicted), they grumbled, they held grudges, they were jealous, etc. etc. Furthermore, they had to experience the fellowship of His sufferings, they had to face temptation…and fail. They had to fall, sometimes over and over, until they finally learned to rest in the arms of God and His Sovereign love, mercy and grace. Some didn’t learn quickly (Simon Peter), some suffered greatly (David) and some never learned (Judas). But, they all had a divine purpose to be used by God, in His way, in His timing and to further His kingdom.

Oh, that we will live UNCOMFORTABLE - Until the whole world hears this song, echoed through each difficult place: “My God is able to deliver me, but if He chooses not to, still I will praise Him and if He chooses to leave me “uncomfortable” for the rest of my life…. So be it! It is what it is and He is who He says He is and that is enough for me!”

Please note, this perspective that comes from living uncomfortable is an attitude of life that you must CHOOSE. I posted a picture this week that was a quote from an 8-year old girl named Hannah… it said “If you’re feeling blue, try painting yourself a different color”. I would add to that: “Don’t stress over staying in the lines, don’t worry about whether or not you are using the “proper” crayon, and for heaven’s sake, don’t worry about other people’s coloring!” May we take each day that God gives us, fully relying on His grace and strive to be okay when life gets “uncomfortable”. It may be just where God has placed us ON PURPOSE, to mold and make us into who HE wants us to be, to see what HE wants us to see, and to learn to love like HE wants us to love! I long to learn to see things through the lens of God’s word, His character and His purpose!

If you are feeling stuck, or that you won’t measure up in some way, take heart. Our hope is in HIM, our expectation is of HIM, and HE will never leave us or forsake us! He is the SAME, yesterday, today & FOREVER. God alone desires that HE receive all honor, glory and praise. And please know, that will NEVER happen until we learn to live “uncomfortable,” trusting that truth stated in Romans 8 that ALL things work together for our good and His glory, for those that LOVE Him. For the perfectionist reading this, relax… rest… be renewed - KNOW that it’s OK to be a“hot mess” or to be “uncomfortable”… for that may just be the place that you finally get a glimpse… a deep abiding, lasting, loving glimpse of your Savior Jesus. You may not like feeling out of control, you may not like not knowing what the future holds, you may not like that you can’t “fix” it all… but oh, the joy, peace and rest you will experience when you TRUST in the God of every uncomfortable circumstance, the One who created you, the One who loves you, just as you are BUT entirely too much to leave you there forever!

I don’t know who these truths were meant to encourage today, maybe just me. But, I love sharing and learning, and being uncomfortable for Christ! May today find me closer to Him than yesterday, loving and knowing Him more, and ever content with exactly where HE has me! AMEN!!