We want to regularly be Challenging Comfort to not become lazy and complacent, Yet, the idea of always being uncomfortable is exhausting for most of us. We need times of comfort to help us recharge and refocus.
While the Bible doesn’t specifically mention comfort zones, it does teach us that God is continually leading us toward a foundation for growth that is found in the comfort he offers.
Forms of Comfort
Everyone approaches comfort and discomfort differently. In other words, the balance of the two looks very different in my life than it does in yours. As Christians, though, our source of comfort is the same.
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)
“Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” (Psalm 23:4)
God comforts each of us in our troubles and does so by guiding and correcting us. More specifically, that comfort can take the form of:
- Rest and peace (Matthew 11:28-30; Philippians 4:7). We have constant opportunities for rest and peace. Most of us simply do not see or neglect to look for this reality. Either that or we are just too busy to think about their possibility. Because God’s word says rest and peace are promised to us, let’s begin to see their possibility. Start by praying for eyes to see the rest and peace God has for you.
- Security and assurance (Isaiah 32:18; Psalm 91:1). When we dwell with the Lord, we find security and assurance that remains steady even when it seems everything is changing around us. His security and assurance makes me want to be brave enough to stretch and grow, to challenge my comfort zones and learn new things.
- Compassion and support (Isaiah 66:13). The compassion God has for his people comes through in his comfort and support of them in times of trials, even self-induced ones.
Comforted to Comfort
“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:11)
We are comforted to comforter. We’re not comforted to be comfortable. We receive comfort to extend comfort to others. That’s one of the main reasons God has for giving us his comfort. Said another way, God gives us his comfort both to comfort us and to allow us to comfort others in times of trial and struggle.
In the peace and rest you receive from God and because your security and assurance is in him, you can step outside your comfort zones and offer comfort and encouragement to others when they do so. As you receive compassion and support from Him, you can then confidently extend compassion and support to others.
In this, we see that we are given comfort so that we can do uncomfortable things. All the ways in which God comforts us combine to create a stable comfort – a foundation of comfort – that helps us challenge ourselves to stretch and, in some cases, smash through the limits that comfort places on us.
The goal then, is to become comfortably uncomfortable. It’s finding that balance of resting in God’s comfort in ways that lead us to extend beyond the limits we’ve placed on ourselves.
Begin this journey of comforted to comforter by evaluating your current comfort zones. Which ones serve you well and are regularly fed by comfort from God? Which ones are holding you back and maybe even keeping you from stepping out in faith?
How is God comforting you to be a comfort to others? How does he want you to comfort others? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.
Interested in delving deeper into this idea of being Comfortably Uncomfortable? Sign up to receive updates on my upcoming book scheduled to be released in Spring 2025. You’ll receive previews of book content as the project progresses toward completion as well as information on and previews from other books in the pipeline.
