One of my favorite songs ever is “Comfortably Numb” by
Pink Floyd. To me, it speaks powerfully into one of the greatest problems we
face. As the song says, we would do almost anything to remain comfortable; even
if that means we must numb ourselves and thus miss out on much of the depth and
power and possibilities and wonderful nuances of life. I was thinking about
this as I am living through another winter in Memphis.
This winter I have been watching the good people of
Memphis react to the possibility of bad weather. As a person who spent many
years digging through winter in central Iowa and then in central Illinois, I try
to keep in mind that these people rarely, if ever, experience a significant
snow fall. By that I mean, when we talk about bad weather I just smile instead
of snickering.
It has not been nearly as temperate this winter as
last winter. We haven’t really had any bad weather but the local weather people
have, several times, gleefully predicted cold, ice and snow. So far, here in
central Memphis (Mid-town) where I live, we have had a total of ¼ inch of snow.
(Yes, I measured it.) But every prediction brings on a low grade panic.
Activities are cancelled. Grocery stores are invaded and emptied. People call
in sick for work. Memphians hunker down for the invasion of the “White Death.”
Having lived in small towns most of my adult life, I
have seen these fear based responses many times. Over the years I have met
several people who insist on staying in their small town. I don’t just mean
they continue to live in that town; they refuse to venture out of their town.
They won’t go to the nearest large town or city because it is unfamiliar
territory and it makes them uncomfortable. There is too much traffic; too many
people; they don’t know where to find things; something bad may happen to them.
I am amazed by how many decisions we all make that are couched in and motivated
by fear.
Not only do we seem to fear things that may kill us,
we seem to fear anything that will bring us a change; a challenge; possible
growth; discomfort. Many in our culture go to extremes to avoid any discomfort
in their lives. At the first sign of discomfort we stop what we are doing and
retreat back into our famous comfort zone. I am reminded of my days of playing
sports. Many, if not all, of our practices were uncomfortable. (That was a huge
understatement.) Not once did I hear a coach say, “Gee, fellas, you look a
little uncomfortable. Why don’t we take a break? Better yet, let’s just go
home.” Didn’t happen. Instead I heard things like: “Do it again until you get
it right.” “No pain, no gain.” “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.”
“Quitters never win.” Comfort was never a part of the discussion.
When one understands that fear is the opposite of
faith, we start to realize that fear is never a good reason to make any
decision. Now, I am not suggesting that we make obviously stupid choices and
put us in terribly dangerous situations. I am from Kentucky where the most
often repeated last words are, “Watch this.” The question I am asking is, “Are
a majority of your decisions based on an outcome you fear?” And there is an
excellent possibility that what you fear will not happen. Much like the weather
forecasts, it has been said that most of the things we have feared never
happened. Do you believe that, as you invite God into all of the decisions of
your life, you can begin to expect positive outcomes? Faith instead of fear.
They may not be “comfortable” outcomes, but they may be Godly outcomes. They may
not be easy, but they will be healthy.
I have heard it said that we move forward in life when
chasing meaning overcomes our avoidance of discomfort. I guess that, on a
certain level, sums up the Christian life. God has called us to live lives of
meaning; of significance. We will never do that if our most important goal is
our own comfort. God didn’t create us and call us to be comfortable. He made us
and calls us to be impactful – to live lives of significance. It is my theory
that we will never be where God wants us to be, doing what God wants us to be
doing, if we are in our comfort zone.
Copyright © 2014, William T. McConnell, All Rights
Reserve
No comments:
Post a Comment