Back in my youthful days, I used to wear size 7-1/2 shoes. Over time, something sinister, like gravity, has taken hold, and now my average shoe is a whopping size 9. Since “comfort” is now my middle name, no 6-inch pointy-toed pinching instruments of torture for me. No sirree, gimme shoes with stretchy fabric and marshmallowy insoles.
Yes,
being comfortable seems to become more important the older I get. I want things to be easy, not hard, I want to
feel good, not bad. I had a friend once
say, “what is life, if not to be
comfortable?” I remember
cringing at that remark … yet, here I am, craving comfort in my shoes, my
pillows, and my car.
But
thankfully, the Lord loves me so much that He’s spent the last 3 decades teaching
me that life is more than squooshy comfort.
As I’m learning to know Him, I’ve found that sometimes His Word is not
comfortable at ALL. In fact, more often
than not, it “pinches” my heart. And the crazy thing is, this is one area where
I actually WANT to be somewhat uncomfortable.
So
I need to check myself, as I do my daily reading. Am I looking only for the “comfortable”
verses? Or do I want to experience growing
pains from His words? If I’m opening
myself to Him as I read, and ask to be taught and convicted of sin, I know that
He will do it. He certainly wants me to
be comfortable and secure in His love, promises, and salvation. But beyond that, He also desires that I grow
up in Christ (1 Peter 2:2; 2 Peter 3:18; Ephesians 4:15). That means being willing to accept conviction
and discipline. I am blessed when He
chastens me (Psalm 94:2). He reproves me
because He loves me, as His child (Proverb 3:11, 12). Therefore, I accept the pinching of my soul
and not reject it.
My
compassionate, loving, and reproving Father, how I thank You that You have
planted me into a church that doesn’t offer pinch-free sermons so that I can
feel good about my sins (and no comfy spiritual shoes to walk through that very wide door to hell). You have given
me brothers and sisters in Christ who are able and willing to be the “Nathans”
in my life (2 Samuel 12). You didn’t
save me just so I could have a comfortable life on this earth. You saved me to glorify You, to grow in Christ,
to do Your work which You have prepared for me to do (Ephesians 2:10), and
ultimately, to be like You, and with You, for all eternity. I praise You, that you have “opened my lips
that my mouth may declare Your praise” (Psalm 51:15).
