Discomfort Isn't Always a Bad Thing

Let's be honest, no one likes to be outside of their comfort zone. We don’t like to feel pain. We don’t like to be embarrassed. We don’t like to be told we’re doing something wrong. We don’t like to confront someone else if we see them caught in sin. We don’t like when the preacher preaches about a sin that exposes our guilt. Furthermore, our natural tendency is to excuse, justify and even ignore certain parts of God’s Word because it confronts us in our self-perceived righteousness. We often avoid biblically intentional accountability and discipleship because it makes us feel uncomfortable. Ironically, though, discomfort and pain are often emotional agents that God uses to initiate change in our lives.

Whenever people understand the gospel for the first time, they are confronted with the reality of their sin. They will see their sin in light of a holy God who requires absolute perfection. This encounter with God is uncomfortable, and it’s supposed to be this way. If it weren’t uncomfortable, then there would be no urgency to repent. However, biblical repentance is brought about by people seeing their sin as the wretched wickedness that it truly is and recognizing that they cannot attain God’s required righteousness on their own strength, because the bondage of sin is too great. This is a very uncomfortable feeling. If this discomfort leads to true brokenness and godly sorrow over sin, it will inevitably lead people to repent and cling to Jesus Christ in faith (2 Corinthians 7:10).

After people repent of their sins and respond in faith to Jesus, their spiritual journey begins. This spiritual journey is a process called sanctification, in which believers are becoming more and more like Christ. There is no magic bullet for this process. It is a long journey of intentional and dependent (on the Holy Spirit) work that does not happen overnight. Often times, the Lord uses discomfort to lead His people to repentance of sin, greater dependence upon Him, and greater conformity into His image. When people live in constant comfort and ease, they are prone to forget their great need for Christ. Discomfort is often the crucible God uses to sanctify His people. God uses all things for the good of those who love Him (Romans 8:28). That good that he refers to is to be made more like Jesus, to be changed little by little and prepared for glory with Him one day (Romans 8:29). The reality is that we as Christians need one another in this growth process. We were not meant to live the Christian life alone. We need encouragement, accountability, confrontation of sin, and true community with others. All of these things come in the context of one-on-one discipleship and require us to be transparent with one another. Sometimes these things require us to get out of our comfort zones and be a little uncomfortable. However, these things are necessary for our spiritual health.

Don’t settle for comfort. You can rest assured, Satan wants you to be comfortable. He wants you to be comfortable with your current spiritual condition. The enemy wants you to be comfortable with the idea that your friend is lost. He wants you to assume someone else will share the gospel with them and disciple them. He wants you to be comfortable being a pew sitter the rest of your life. Don’t waste your life being comfortable. Seek a little discomfort and do the work of the ministry!