My Pastor made this statement in a recent Sunday sermon, “Gods agenda is not for you to be happy and comfortable. It’s for you to be Godly.” That statement did not tickle my ears, but I recognized it as truth, truth that I need to embrace.
This is the thing, I like comfort A LOT. I like stretchy pants, a warm cup of coffee in my hand, perhaps someone to entertain me, kicked back in my easy chair. I mean who doesn’t, right? Yet, if comfort is not God’s priority then I’m thinkin’, it probably shouldn’t be mine.
It reminds me of the time my mom, took my younger sister, brother and I to get our vaccinations for school. My sister didn’t like shots and when I say didn’t like, I guess I mean, they evidently terrified her beyond all reason! My mom told me I should go first to show her it was fine, so I took one for the team. My sis still wasn’t convinced, so our little brother, took his turn and represented well. Jig was up and there was no more stalling. It was at this point that she threw her arms and legs around a pole in the center of the room bear hug style and resolutely refused to let go. My mom was unable to command, pry, bribe or sweet talk her off of that pole.
You see my sister, was clinging for dear life to her comfort. My mom was not prodding my sister into doing this because it gave her joy to see the tortured look on her daughter’s face or because she enjoyed the audience that my sisters display was attracting. She was asking my sister to let go of the pole and let the nurse have her arm because she felt it was best for her, even though she knew it wasn’t something my sister would enjoy (that’s putting it mildly). My mom gave it her best effort, but the four of us walked out of that health clinic that day and only two of us kids had the vaccination paperwork we needed to register for school. I believe there were reinforcements in the form of Dad, that got involved to see the shot through the next time around 🙂
Although, shots never bothered me, I can definitely identify with my sister. I cling to my comfort as well. I hold tightly and refuse to let go, and I have even been known to give God ideas on how I’d like to see things go, a few suggestions on what may work best. I will plead, cry, dig my feet in because I don’t want it to hurt! I don’t want it to be hard! I don’t want to be disappointed! I don’t want to fail! I want to be happy and comfortable!!
How about you? Have you been unwilling to do what you knew you needed to because it wasn’t going to be easy, because it would require pain and sacrifice, because it didn’t come with a guarantee that everything would turn out the way you want?
I may be a slow learner, but I am just now grasping the fact, that my comfort and yes, even my happiness are not God’s priority. He sees the whole picture and to be quite frank, it is a good day, if I can see beyond me. God did not put me on this earth to make sure I was happy and that life turned out just how I want.
Does that mean He doesn’t care when, it’s hard, when my heart is breaking, when I am fearful? He absolutely cares! But, He loves you and I enough to focus on the end game. He loves us enough to see beyond the feel good in the moment to the greatness that He’s called us to. He loves us so much that He looks beyond the temporary of this world and focuses on the eternal. God allows discomfort in our loves because it grows us, it makes us strong, it teaches us who He is. It draws us closer to Him. It deepens our trust in His ability and His heart for us. Does that make it easy? Absolutely not. Does it make it worth it? Absolutely, YES!
He never wastes our discomfort, He uses it to grow us and to make us look more like Him! Embracing this truth, is helping me to loosen my grip on my desires for a happy, comfortable existence and grab onto what God is asking me to do, even if it’s hard, even if it’s painful, even if it requires endurance, because He knows what it is going to take to make me all that I was created to be. I’m thinking that’s something worth leaving our comfort zone for! You in?!
“Gods agenda is not for you to be happy and comfortable. It’s for you to be godly.” – Pastor Leif Holmes
Neeserisms 