Have you ever given thought to the truth that the most uncomfortable circumstances often produce the greatest growth? For example, a woman in intense labor who then births the miracle of a baby girl or boy. Or a single seed that is hidden deep in the earth that then produces fruit and vegetables to eat. Or the tremendous aches and pains of an athlete in training who then conquers the race they set out to win. Maybe there are a few examples running through your mind....or something specific you have walked through that was extremely uncomfortable (external or internal) but produced great growth. I think we all could name a few examples from our own life and how we’ve seen God at work in the places where we would rather He not touch.
Which leads me to a story we have heard a million times since childhood. It’s the story of a man who obeyed God and built a boat because a flood was coming that changed the course of history.
This past week, I read the story again. And this time, what caught my attention was the fact of how uncomfortable Noah and his family probably were. Let’s just put it this way. How would you feel if you and your family were on a gigantic boat for one year with every animal on earth? Plus + you didn’t know it would be for one year...in fact, when you boarded the boat there was an infinite amount of time that lay ahead of you - an infinite amount of time to be surrounded by water & animal feces (just to get real) - an infinite amount of time to be in the thick of the biggest storm ever recorded in history. I am 100% certain that Noah and his family were a mishmash of emotions and taken to the extreme level of
u n c o m f o r t a b l e.
Now, we all know the ending to this story and how God sent the rainbow to be a forever sign of promise that He would never again destroy the earth. But may we never forget the middle of this story and how we, too, can stand confidently in the uncomfortable of our lives because we know growth is the reward.
Maybe this blog is just for me this week or maybe its for you also. Either way, I am sure we all are in the uncomfortable middle of something. The “in between“ of the beginning and the end. Perhaps for you it’s just about making it through the day with your kids. Perhaps its a long medical journey of more questions than answers. Perhaps it’s being engaged and waiting for your wedding day. Perhaps it‘s expecting your first, second, third or fourth baby to be born. Perhaps it’s waiting for a dream to come to pass.
It‘s in the || u n c o m f o r t a b l e || that the greatest amount of growth happens.
So, here’s to us all today as we toss our arms open to the uncomfortable unknowns.
Growth is taking place within you today and that is worth celebrating!
Kommentarer