Get Uncomfortable!

July 16, 2020

Get Uncomfortable!

No one wants to get out of their comfort zone.  The reason is simple; that place or person or position or process or perspective is comfortable!

One of the results of the Covid virus is that it has made us uncomfortable.  We have to deal with the uncertainty and anxiety that comes along with our varied responses to the virus. 

Because we are uncomfortable, we become impatient and frustrated as well as sad and afraid.  The virus has demanded we look at life in a different way; we have been forced out of our comfort zone!

One of the results of George Floyd’s death on Memorial Day is that it has made us uncomfortable.  We have to deal with real people and hard issues that are part of both subtle expressions and blatant acts of racism. 

Because we are uncomfortable, we may deny racism is an issue or we may blame protestors who resort to violence or we may sit in yet another Bible study that does not lead to life-change.  The death of George Floyd has demanded we look at one another in a different way; we have been forced out of our comfort zone!

Peter and John are on their way to worship the Lord God.  Just outside the gates of the place of worship, they encounter a man who is begging for money.  It is clear that the man has not been able to walk for a very long time.

The man’s inability to walk makes us uncomfortable.  The man’s begging makes us uncomfortable.  The man’s presence by the door of the worship places us uncomfortable.  We have to deal with the kind of pity that makes no difference or the inconvenience of stepping around the man’s begging place or our own reluctance to get involved. 

Because we are uncomfortable, we turn our face the other way, we blame him for his situation, or we choose to forget that Jesus calls us to love every person.  A man who asks for money because he cannot walk demands that we express our faith in Jesus in a different way; we are forced out of our comfort zone!

Peter reaches out for the man’s hand.  But, rather than put a couple of bucks in his hand and convince himself he has done all he can, Peter takes the man’s hand and lifts him up.  In Acts 3:6 Peter says; “In the name of Jesus Christ from Nazareth, get up and start walking.”   

The man gets up and begins leaping and jumping and singing praises to the Lord.  The man’s life is changed; he has a future with hope!  In response, the man goes with Peter and John and joins them in worship.  None of this would have happened if Peter and John would not have been willing to get uncomfortable.

Jesus was not with them to do it for them.  I imagine they questioned whether they had enough faith.  To complicate matters, they did not know the man.  The man could have been taking advantage of them.  They might even get sick after touching the man.  But, Peter and John risked getting uncomfortable so the Holy Spirit could use them to change another person’s life.

You probably know someone who is a bit stuck right now.  As you listen to their story, it appears that they are a bit too comfortable in their stuckness.  Although they complain some about being stuck, it is comfortable and familiar and easy to leave things the way they are right now.

Imagine offering your friend an invitation to get uncomfortable this week.  Ask Jesus to give them the courage to take a chance on trying a different approach or engaging in one more conversation or submitting another resume or… 

Your friend’s breakthrough may be just on the other side of reaching out their hand to receive a healing touch from Jesus.  They may receive the courage and strength they need from Jesus’ hand through the touch of our hand.  Maybe you are being called to say to your friend, “Get up!”

The man who was healed through Peter and John responded with pure delight in the Lord; he sang, he leaped, and he ran around the courtyard.  And then, he worshipped the Lord.  On the other side of getting uncomfortable there is often a special kind of delight that fills our heart.

Take Delight In The Lord!

Doug