No one wants to be uncomfortable … it’s just … uncomfortable.
As I was doing a short yoga video recently, I was more aware of certain muscles than I had been in a long time. It is not that they hurt, just that the movements stretched the muscles to the edge of what was comfortable … and I was made aware of that edge.
Later I was thinking about the exercise of stretching our muscles in other areas of life.
Just like it was hard, uncomfortable, for me to stretch my muscles (ok, lets face it, it was hard to turn the yoga video on), it is hard to do other uncomfortable stuff in life.
Going to an event where you know no one … that can be uncomfortable.
Speaking to a crowd … that can be uncomfortable.
Going to the dentist … that can be uncomfortable.
Saying I am sorry … that can be uncomfortable.
Having to get up in the morning, leaving our homes, driving on the highway, going into our workplace … those can all be uncomfortable.
Of course, these things that can make us uncomfortable are also fears.
Fears, like the uncomfortable feeling in my muscles, require two things of us:
- respect
- refusal to give up because of it
We need to respect our fears/discomfort, acknowledging that they may be communicating to us that we need to be cautious about our next steps. If I start to feel discomfort when I am stretching, that is a precursor to pain. Discomfort is like a warning sign … for discomfort as well as fears, signalling to us to keep our eyes open, be aware.
We also need to refuse to give in to discomfort/fears. When I feel discomfort in my muscles, I might need to stop for that day, but I need to return to the exercise, so that my muscles continue to be stretched, little by little. It is the same with fears, they may cause us to pause, take a break or look around to see if there are any dangers, but our fears should not cause us to halt permanently, for those fears can be stretched making us more able to endure how they can make us feel.
Fear, like physical discomfort, is a nasty feeling, but we need not fear the feeling of fear itself. We have been created to do the difficult, the brave, even the frightening.
Our Creator has given us his presence, in all situations … so we are never left alone when fear appears.
But now, God’s Message,
the God who made you in the first place
the One who got you started:
“Don’t be afraid, I’ve redeemed you.
I’ve called your name. You’re mine.
When you’re in over your head, I’ll be there with you.
When you’re in rough waters, you will not go down.
When you’re between a rock and a hard place,
it won’t be a dead end—
Because I am God, your personal God,
your Savior.
I paid a huge price for you!
That’s how much you mean to me!
That’s how much I love you!
I’d sell off the whole world to get you back,
trade the creation just for you.
“So don’t be afraid: I’m with you.”
Isaiah 43:1-6 (The Message)
itsawonderfilledlife 