Comfortable

First off, general announcement – when we post blogs from iPads and iPhones, all of the paragraphs go away. So please know that we do know how to write, but formatting just gets silly on here sometimes! Thanks for bearing with us 🙂 Anyway, on to my blog… This was actually written last Sunday, June 16.

The Sabbath is so good. How joyous it is that God invented a day of rest and commanded us to have one every single week! One whole day where I get to do nothing except enjoy You and the beautiful life You give? Okay, Jesus, I suppose I could take you up on that offer.

So on this beautiful Sabbath day in India, I set up my hammock. Automatic good choice. I was reading my Amplified Bible, journaling with purple marker, sweating in the absurd heat, and deeply loving time with my sweet Maker. Pure delight. This Sunday afternoon in India was so comfortable.

Then it hit me. Comfortable. Comfortable is dangerous.

See, this is my fourth time in India. Because God fashioned my heart specifically for this country, because it makes sense to me, because I love it here, because the Lord in His sweetness decided to make this place seem like home to me. That is a GOOD thing. He has magnificent reasons for making my heart beat for India. Reasons that I can’t even fathom but that I know are so good. Yes, I am supposed to love India. I am supposed to feel comfortable here. God designed it that way.

But comfortable is dangerous. I have noticed that as time goes on here in India, I am neglecting intentionality in seizing opportunities. Satan is using my comfort against me. What God intended to use in order to win souls Satan is trying to abuse in order to forget souls.

See, I believe that God allowed me to feel comfortable in this country so that I could put aside all worries except preaching the Gospel and winning souls for Christ. Oh, how beautiful is a life that is concerned only with glorifying its Creator and inviting others to do the same. I want a life like that. I want to be so comfortable that my eyes need to gaze upon nothing but the radiant face of Jesus. And I want people of India to be impacted by that unswerving devotion and follow my gaze.

But Satan knows that I’m comfortable here. And he knows the power in that. So what does he do? Make me forget. Forget the reason for which I came, forget the hope to which I am called, forget the purpose which I serve. It is easy for me to simply live life in India because I like it here. It’s comfortable. But comfortable is dangerous, because then I forgo fervency and neglect necessity.

It is not an option for me to preach Christ. What in the world am I doing here if I am not giving every second of every day and every ounce of all I am to help His Kingdom come? I did not come to India to be comfortable and complacent. I came to India to be powerful and passionate.

And that only by His grace. Yes, He planned for me to love India and He planned for me to be here. He knew I’d be comfortable; He wanted it that way. He can use my joy in being here for amazing things.

But I must have my mind and eyes fixed on Him. I do not want to miss out on what He is doing because I am too busy absentmindedly enjoying cows in the street and chai in the heat. God’s children in India are too precious for that. HE is too precious for that.

So Jesus, thank you for letting me be comfortable. But forgive me for being too comfortable. You deserve all glory, and in a country where my heart is so at home, I want to be concerned with nothing less than giving You all glory. Use me to set You on display day in and day out. Far more than seeing another white girl trying to be Indian, the people of India need to see a Father reaching for His children. God, I love that I am comfortable here, but oh how I love You more.