Uncomfortable

"I know this looks like a midieval torture device," says my physical therapist. "And well--it kind of is."

She has this sly (perhaps slightly sick?) kind of smile as she velcroes me to a contraption designed to position my recovering arm so that it stays straight.

"I know this may be a little uncomfortable. But it will stretch out the muscles and tissue to help the healing process."

In order to heal, I have to be a little uncomfortable for awhile. It's a basic concept for a girl with a broken arm. But I'm starting to see how it applies to other areas of life.

Being uncomfortable pushes us to be creative and innovative (see sling + bling pictures). It pushes us to change--to just do something. When people get uncomfortable, it makes them speak. It prods them to stand up.

So why are we afraid of being uncomfortable? Why are we scared to make others feel anything even close to slight discomfort?

If my number one priority was to stay comfortable, I'd stay broken. And part of me wonders if Christians (especially in North America) have fallen into the comfortably-broken state of existence. Let me explain ...

Awhile ago, I was talking with a Christian acquaintance. Somehow, we ended up talking about giving at church.

"God has been such a good provider to our church," she said. "Our pastor never talks about giving or tithing--there's just a box at the back of the sanctuary and somehow, there's always enough to cover our expenses."

She smiles, as if to say, "Isn't that wonderful? Isn't it a miracle?"

But my insides are screaming.

I don't remember exactly what I said or how I got out of the conversation. But I wanted to retort back sarcastically, "Wow. Isn't that great? For you--for your church. But think about what you could be doing in our community and in our world? Think about the people who need God. Think about the homeless, sick and poor. These people need you! It's our job as Christians to care for them--but your church can't do it without enough money to look beyond its walls."

Embedded in her story was the fact that her church and pastor wanted to keep people comfortable. They avoided talking about money because--let's face it--people think money is personal. They're comfortable. They have what they need. Why encourage people to do more?

Here's another example--last year, I was driving home and saw a church billboard that said, "Miss hymns? Join us for Sunday worship."

There's absolutely nothing wrong with hymns. I actually like them. But this sign bugged me because of its focus--on keeping Christians comfortable. This church was using its billboard on a busy street NOT to attract the unsaved or even to provide some sort of inspiring message for everyone. Instead, it was aiming to attract the already-saved who wanted to stay in their comfort zones.

If Christians are going to make a significant impact on the world, we have to be okay with being a bit uncomfortable. We have to risk making other people (particularly each other) feel a bit uncomfortable.

To heal, we have to stretch--our hearts, our budgets, our schedules. We have to challenge ourselves. We have to step up.

Because if we sit in comfort, we stay broken--and our complacency shows the world that we don't care.

Related post:

• The Emmys, the Bible and the gift of giving