The Joy of Being Uncomfortable
I had a wonderful discussion with a sweet lady earlier this week & we got on the topic of being uncomfortable. Not like the tightness of your shoes or clothes uncomfortable, but with where you are in life uncomfortable.
With it being the New Year & there being A LOT of New Year's resolutions going around I'm sure a lot of them are because you didn't like where you were in 2016. You didn't like who you were in 2016.
Maybe these resolutions are making you uncomfortable now? Maybe you're on the verge of giving up? Maybe you already have given up? Maybe you're frustrated because you didn't realize how hard this was going to be?
Let me start be saying, it's OKAY to be uncomfortable.
How many of us have heard a story (or maybe you have done this yourself) of someone going dress shopping for a very important occasion & when you try on a certain size it fits great. Cool. So, you get a size smaller. Why not right? I mean, you can lose a whole size by the event date. You have a few weeks, or months, or whatever. So you buy this UNCOMFORTABLE outfit instead of the comfortable easy one.
Now why?
Because you want to lose some weight? Because you want to make life a living hell each time you try on the dress and you're so close but not there yet? Because why not? Because maybe the smaller size is already at the store so you don't have to order it?
Whatever the case, you do it & now you have to work for it. You have to work to be comfortable again. Right now you are so stressed & comfortable, but don't worry because in a few weeks it'll fit & you're event will be perfect. JUST like the way you look in the dress.
Now you're probably thinking that this story was pointless. Like what was the meaning of ALL this?! At the beginning of the story you were comfortable with the the first size you tried on, yet you chose a smaller one. You decided to work for something greater & not be stagnant. In this great action you chose to grow (inwardly not outwardly). This made you uncomfortable, but once the effort was put forth & your endpoint was reached there was so much joy. Once you were able to put on the smaller dress with ease & see yourself & the result of your effort, there was comfort in knowing that you accomplished your goal & could now choose a new goal.
The same is true in all we work towards; physically, mentally, & spiritually.
Nephi also became uncomfortable at times. Him & his brothers went to collect the brass plates from Laban but after trying a few times could not get Laban to hand them over. After being smitten with a rod by his elder brother & being visited by an angel of the Lord, Nephi again went into the city to get the plates. Now Nephi was led by the spirit & found Laban, drunk in the street. "And it came to pass that I was constrained by the spirit that I should kill Laban; but I said in my heart: Never at any time have I shed the blood of man. And I shrunk and I would not slay him."₁ Nephi SHRUNK at the thought of killing Laban. He was uncomfortable killing a man (as all of us would be I hope) even with the prompting coming from The Lord.
Now, this isn't an example where after he felt immense joy, but I can promise you that because of this, we can feel joy because we now have the words of our forefathers. Nephi used this prompting to reflect on what The Lord had already taught him & he was able to grow his testimony more. "Therefore I did obey the voice of the Spirit..." ₂ & if we do the same & follow Nephi's example, we can also grow & become joyful. The joy may come now, like when Nephi & his brother's returned home to their family with the plates, or it may come later, like our joy of having the scriptures now. But, joy will come.
Even Jesus Christ, our elder brother, the Savior of the World was uncomfortable at a time. "He pleaded, 'Nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.' Though sinless, the Savior was called upon to '[suffer] pains & afflictions & temptations of every kind.' including the sicknesses & infirmities of His people."₄ He was uncomfortable in Gethsemane for our benefit. So when we struggle, when we are sad, sick, hurt, or think no one understands, we can be comforted in knowing that He does.
With it being the New Year & there being A LOT of New Year's resolutions going around I'm sure a lot of them are because you didn't like where you were in 2016. You didn't like who you were in 2016.
Maybe these resolutions are making you uncomfortable now? Maybe you're on the verge of giving up? Maybe you already have given up? Maybe you're frustrated because you didn't realize how hard this was going to be?
Let me start be saying, it's OKAY to be uncomfortable.
How many of us have heard a story (or maybe you have done this yourself) of someone going dress shopping for a very important occasion & when you try on a certain size it fits great. Cool. So, you get a size smaller. Why not right? I mean, you can lose a whole size by the event date. You have a few weeks, or months, or whatever. So you buy this UNCOMFORTABLE outfit instead of the comfortable easy one.
Now why?
Because you want to lose some weight? Because you want to make life a living hell each time you try on the dress and you're so close but not there yet? Because why not? Because maybe the smaller size is already at the store so you don't have to order it?
Whatever the case, you do it & now you have to work for it. You have to work to be comfortable again. Right now you are so stressed & comfortable, but don't worry because in a few weeks it'll fit & you're event will be perfect. JUST like the way you look in the dress.
Now you're probably thinking that this story was pointless. Like what was the meaning of ALL this?! At the beginning of the story you were comfortable with the the first size you tried on, yet you chose a smaller one. You decided to work for something greater & not be stagnant. In this great action you chose to grow (inwardly not outwardly). This made you uncomfortable, but once the effort was put forth & your endpoint was reached there was so much joy. Once you were able to put on the smaller dress with ease & see yourself & the result of your effort, there was comfort in knowing that you accomplished your goal & could now choose a new goal.
The same is true in all we work towards; physically, mentally, & spiritually.
Nephi also became uncomfortable at times. Him & his brothers went to collect the brass plates from Laban but after trying a few times could not get Laban to hand them over. After being smitten with a rod by his elder brother & being visited by an angel of the Lord, Nephi again went into the city to get the plates. Now Nephi was led by the spirit & found Laban, drunk in the street. "And it came to pass that I was constrained by the spirit that I should kill Laban; but I said in my heart: Never at any time have I shed the blood of man. And I shrunk and I would not slay him."₁ Nephi SHRUNK at the thought of killing Laban. He was uncomfortable killing a man (as all of us would be I hope) even with the prompting coming from The Lord.
Now, this isn't an example where after he felt immense joy, but I can promise you that because of this, we can feel joy because we now have the words of our forefathers. Nephi used this prompting to reflect on what The Lord had already taught him & he was able to grow his testimony more. "Therefore I did obey the voice of the Spirit..." ₂ & if we do the same & follow Nephi's example, we can also grow & become joyful. The joy may come now, like when Nephi & his brother's returned home to their family with the plates, or it may come later, like our joy of having the scriptures now. But, joy will come.
Even Jesus Christ, our elder brother, the Savior of the World was uncomfortable at a time. "He pleaded, 'Nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.' Though sinless, the Savior was called upon to '[suffer] pains & afflictions & temptations of every kind.' including the sicknesses & infirmities of His people."₄ He was uncomfortable in Gethsemane for our benefit. So when we struggle, when we are sad, sick, hurt, or think no one understands, we can be comforted in knowing that He does.
I know that life can be hard sometimes, & a lot of times we are thrown into uncomfortable situations, either by our own design or someone else's. If we aren't uncomfortable we can't grow, we can't learn to be comforted & to feel the presence of the Holy Ghost, the comforter. Christ knows us, He knows our strengths & our weaknesses, He knows us by name, He knows our past, present, & future. There is nothing more He wants to do than to comfort us, but in order to do that we need to step outside the box. We need to do things that we might not usually do because it might benefit someone else or maybe just because it would benefit your eternal growth. Each time we progress, The Lord progresses too, & I know that I want to be there with Him one day.
That, is the ultimate JOY.
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