Peace Zones: When Comfort Just Isn't Enough

May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.

Romans 1:7b (NLT)

I have a confession to make. I'm a sucker for anything that helps me feel comfortable. I load up my snack cabinet with comfort foods (especially Oreos & Pop Tarts!), carry a water bottle at all times to avoid the slightest hint of thirst, wear sweat pants around the house as much as possible and position the driver's seat perfectly every time I jump in the car. At church, I have to be perfectly settled into my seat before I feel I can really focus on the speaker. 

I tend to defend my comfort zones fiercely. Sometimes I see people across the room that I know I should talk to and chicken out because the topic they'll probably bring up might make me feel uncomfortable. Sometimes I avoid watching the news if I think it might make me feel uneasy. I've even stopped reading convicting passages in the Bible before because it made me realize I was trying to control my life rather than surrendering control to Jesus.

Now please understand, I'm not saying that comfort is always bad. After all, comfort helps us stay focused and rest well, which God commands us to do in order to stay filled. But the last couple years, my relationship with my comfort zones has become kind of a love-hate relationship. I love avoiding pain and discomfort (which isn't always possible!), but I hate what's often still missing when I'm feeling comfortable or even comforted: PEACE. I've realized that human answers and physical comforts don't bring peace. By peace, I'm not talking about the absence of wars, pain or discomfort. I'm talking about the spirit of calmness and trust God gives us despite our difficult circumstances, a peace that defies human logic and doesn't make sense when we're feeling it. 

As a pastor, it can be easy to slip into the trap of asking God to remove discomfort and pain from students' lives. Sure it's great to pray for better circumstances and healing, but what's more important is asking for God to give them peace regardless of their circumstances. Maybe that's why Paul began every one of his 13 letters asking God to give his readers peace. Paul didn't instruct the churches to stay comfortable. It would have been impossible to live one's faith boldly in such hostile environments and remain in one's comfort zone. But he did ask God to give them peace to help them endure persecution and share the gospel. Paul realized that Jesus loves to speak to us during those times we're feeling least comfortable, and he didn't want anyone to miss hearing Jesus' voice just because things weren't working out as planned. 

So the choice is ours. Will we cling to our comfort zones or ask God to expand our peace zones? I don't know about you, but I'd much rather seek peace everywhere I go than miss out on opportunities to grow while cowering in my comfort zone. I guess I'll have to think about that as I head home to slip into my sweatpants. :)