Great Things DO Come from Comfort Zones

I heard a piece of an online sermon recently that demonized comfort in the life of a Christian while also glorifying trials, and it sent my mind into a flurry of Biblical processing.

  

In the past, a sermon like this would have triggered immediate guilt and fear as I questioned whether I was going through big enough trials to please God. Instead of giving into my automatic response this time, I got curious with the premise of this sermon that I’ve heard taught various ways over the years of being a Christian.

I think guilt and fear are used far too much from the platform of churches to try to motivate people to live more effective Christian lives. I don’t even think preachers mean to do it all the time, but they present a "both/and" message in an "either/or" type way that closes the ears of those who probably need to hear it most and incites shame in those who are sincerely seeking to be Christlike. The "comfort vs trials" message is one that, in my opinion, is not always handled with care.

"Black and white”, “right or wrong” dogmatic interpretation of what the Bible says about this subject could be summarized as “comfort = bad Christian” and “trials = good Christian”. Much of this perspective is based on what was written 2000 years ago by people who were trailblazing the entire Church model. They were shifting the whole direction of a system that had been followed religiously for centuries. This came at a great cost that they were reminding themselves and each other continually was worth it. It’s understandable that they would talk about trials so much, but I don't think it was to glorify them as much as it was to offer comfort in the middle of them.

I think that we make a mistake, as God designed humans, when we make trials a goal for Christian living because “if we are comfortable, it’s wrong.” God takes no pleasure from our pain; just as a good parent takes no pleasure from a child’s pain. Sometimes pain is necessary for learning and growing, but it’s not because it's holy. There is no pain in Heaven. The Bible calls God, “the God of all comfort.” He doesn’t enjoy watching us suffer. It doesn’t automatically make us holy that we are suffering, although suffering is often included on the path to holiness. God’s joy is to grow us into His image…the image we were created in…the image of His Son.

And that transformation involves comfort as much as it does trials. We live from our comfort zone. It’s the foundation of wholeness. The comfort state of the nervous system is described as “rest and digest” (ventral vagal). In this nervous system state we are calm, collected, and confident. This is where our routines happen and where we feel safest. This is where our body repairs damage and heals itself. It’s necessary that we live from this state. We can’t reject our comfort zone or we will never grow it.

The states of the nervous system that are uncomfortable are described as “fight/flight/freeze/fawn” (sympathetic) where adrenaline and cortisol are released into the body so it can take on new or hard things (think Elijah taking on the prophets of Baal at the altar in I Kings 18) and “shutdown” (dorsal vagal) where the body has used all its adrenaline and cortisol and has to now conserve energy for survival (think Elijah in the cave where he fled from Jezebel in I Kings 19). There are various levels of these states that require various amounts of energy, effort, and pain; but these states always require a return to the comfort zone for recovery, otherwise the body suffers long term damage. Your comfort zone is foundational to growth, and a healthy nervous system is one flexible enough to return to the comfort zone on a regular basis.

Yes, we will experience trials, particularly as Christians, but even just as humans. We live in a broken world, and evil is continually working to destroy good. God is also continually teaching us lessons through challenging circumstances. We aren’t made to always be comfortable.

But we aren’t made to always be uncomfortable either. God wouldn’t have created all the beauty that He has given us if that were the case. He wouldn’t provide for us and surround us with people who love us. Even in the middle of trials, He often draws us back, in some way, into our comfort zone for a break (think Elijah when the angel provided food for him and told him to take a nap in I Kings 19).

There’s no reason to seek out trials, any more than there is reason to shun them. We can pray for growth. We can obey even when it’s uncomfortable. We can follow Jesus outside of our comfort zone as the Holy Spirit helps us expand it. But even Paul expounded on the equality of comfort and trials when he related that he had learned to be content in whatever the circumstances...in comfort or in trials (Philippians 4:11). We need both as limited humans.

When we confidently live from a healthy comfort zone, we find ourselves more willing to step outside of it. Our bodies feel ready to take on challenges. We deal with stress and pressure far more wisely. We know how to resource ourselves and how to return to rest when needed.

Our comfort zone doesn't have to be our enemy. It can be the home base from which all great things come when we learn how to make it a healthy place.