I have a friend losing a baby, another diagnosed with cancer at age 24, one whose spouse lost a job for the second time this year, another whose spouse admitted to unfaithfulness, a friend suffering panic attacks from out of nowhere, and one whose son was arrested for underage drinking.
In another vein, many people I know right now are detesting the frigid cold, raging against the demands of their work schedule, freaking out about lost money from a falling economy, complaining about political changes, and still grieving the loss of the Seinfeld sitcom.
And after 40 plus years on this earth with no problem whatsoever, my eyes have decided they want to change and not work the way they used to. I'm peering at you through the coolest pair of drugstore glasses I could find.
What do each and everyone of these people share in common? The desire to get back to a place of comfort. As soon as possible.
I'll try to connect these dots, with the Lord's help. It seems we all are infected with an insidious disease that we don't realize, but that is sabotaging the health and beauty of our days. My friends losing their first-born child are just ready for this long ordeal to be over. The one with the panic attack told me that she just wants to feel like herself again. The woman with the cheating husband said she's having a hard time not just living in denial and putting on the "happy family" face. And it was my young friend facing the cancer operation who said, "It's like we all just want to get back to comfort however we can. Me included."
Folks in winter remember summer. Ones losing money just wish they could get it back and many people refer to "the good old days" as being some other time in their lives. And I keep getting ticked everytime I can't see something like I used to. When will this be gone and things be back to "normal"?
What is this with us? What is "normal," really? We're obsessed with comfort, and getting there as fast as possible.
I don't really know how else to communicate this, but I know I was supposed to write about it. My thoughts go to Jesus, who told us all "In this world you will have trouble." God refers to us as "strangers and aliens" as we roam about this earth because our true place of comfort is our eternal place in heaven. The parables depict the craziness of blessing through persecution and comfort to mourners.
In other words, I'm pretty sure God's primary agenda for us is not our comfort.
I think He might be up to trying to give us His comfort, which is a whole different deal.
However, when we are bent on getting through challenges as fast as possible, getting out the church like lightning to watch the game and take a nap, getting rid of the trouble, getting on with returning to "normal"...maybe then we miss the true opportunities for the real kind of comfort, not that counterfeit stuff.
He said He'd give us "peace that passes understanding," and cries out "comfort, comfort, oh my people." Jesus told us He came to give us life to the full, and to consider our trials all joy because of what He does in us through them. He says He will give us rest when we come to Him heavy-burdened.
I guess to sum it up, if we are looking to hightail it to the place of greatest ease and comfort as quickly as possible, then we probably miss chances for true comfort found only in Christ. Because, if you really think about it, if we're counting on sickness to go away, troubles to disappear, people to be predictable, weather to be perfect, friends to be flawless, leaders to be non-corrupt, money to be more, family members who don't disappoint, aging not to occur, and injustice to cease, then we will never experience peace, joy, or contentment.
I've been so much lately of how we do this, and have been asking God's forgiveness for my shallow, weak, "just-get-me-out" approach to strife, whether big or small. I don't want to be a product of my society. I want to be His creation alone, which is one that welcomes all things as permitted by Him in a greater plan that I could ever hope to imagine.
