When Comfort Gets in the Way

Gold Brush Stroke

The last few weeks I’ve been restless, feeling a missing element in my days. I took inventory to see what might be lost: a healthy family and sturdy home were present;  food and clothing plentiful; security existent; needs abundantly provided; “extras” scattered everywhere; and opportunities available in all directions.

We were comfortable—too comfortable. And I am grateful. But therein also lay the problem: life had become somewhat stale in our routine-laden, comfortable existence. We are busy, very busy, but it is generally a busyness with things of little lasting value.

Sameness has turned into more sameness, allowing the walls to close in and become stifling. Our days have taken on a cadence of the mundane.

The usual and comfortable were stealthily stealing away the beauty of living. light through the leaves

Such is the case when we allow our world to shrink to the four walls of us.  We work (or go to school and its activities), eat, watch T.V., and sleep. And the cycle repeats, endless days after endless days.  Oh we may throw in a shopping day or a couple hours of reading, or even a trip to the park; but lives of little sacrifice—of only reaping, never sewing, of receiving but seldom serving—leave us wanting. (←Tweet this!)

Lost is the adventure, the excitement, the purpose of life itself.  Over time we become blinded to the good things, the gifts of each day: the stark beauty of a sunset, the glorious mystery of a sunrise or season change, the graceful wave of prairie grass in a breeze, the chipper activity of squirrels.

Our lives aren’t meant to be lived only in routine and comfort—to become a habit we follow day after day until our breath finally leaves us. We were created to give and serve and worship. To sing His praises and share His grace. To not just live for us, but to embrace Him and reach out to them.

In order to truly appreciate the lives we’ve been given and the gifts surrounding us, we need to break out of the shells we so carefully constructed—to leave behind some of our comforts. We need to reach out to others … to give so we can truly receive … to move away from the overly comfortable to the sacrificial. We need to lift our eyes from the keyboards and our behinds from the chairs and experience the glory of the Lord as revealed in His creation.

Because the love and goodness of the Lord is always present. We just need to move ourselves out of the way to notice it. (←Tweet this!)

“Surely Your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life … ” (Psalm 23:6a).

Share in the Discussion: What do you do to keep from growing overly comfortable—to remain aware of the glorious world around us and our Kingdom purpose?  

Linking with the following inspirational sites today. Click on a button to read more posts in that linkup.

 Wise-Woman-Builds bloghoplollipopkaysepratt.com

Know that I am blessed by your visits and value your comments. I love to pray for you and hear your stories! If you find my writings encouraging, please share them with others. It’s super easy, just click one of the buttons below. And if you haven’t yet, please consider subscribing to my site by email or RSS feed. You’ll get each post delivered right to you.

By His Grace,

Julie

6 Comments

  1. Mindy @ New Equus - A New Creation on November 28, 2012 at 12:56 pm

    There are those days when I enjoy my comfort. We all need it to be able to recharge and relax…especially after trying times. But you are definitely right…we don’t need to get TOO comfortable!

    • juliesunne on November 28, 2012 at 2:37 pm

      Yes, the too comfortable is what I’m speaking to. I think when we get to caught up in our comfort and fail to share those blessings is when we get into a funk. Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts. Blessings!

  2. Tracy on November 29, 2012 at 1:33 am

    Hi Julie, such a great post and great reminder to not get stuck in the norm of things. You have inspired me to seek out some adventure, with the Lord, oi vey, getting nervous now.
    Thanks too, for linking up with Winsome Wednesday and I look forward to seeing you there again next week.
    God bless
    Tracy

    • juliesunne on November 29, 2012 at 8:36 am

      I’m thankful my words inspired you to action. Perhaps this weekend is the best time for a little adventure. Linkups are wonderful ways to encourage each other–grateful for yours.

  3. Natasha Metzler on November 30, 2012 at 9:54 am

    Oh. My. So well said, Julie! We were not created to live “comfortable” lives. We were created to live for Him.

    • juliesunne on November 30, 2012 at 10:35 am

      Amen!

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Julie Sunne

Hello, I'm Julie, an imperfect wife and mother of four. Life in this broken world is not always easy. Yet, joy can be found in each day through the grace and mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ.

I find it's easy for our day's blessings to get lost in its happenings. But God's "mercies never end" (Lamentations 3:22) and His "grace is sufficient" (2 Corinthians 12:9).

May the posts and pages on this site offer you a measure of peace and encouragement.

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