REINVENT YOU: THE BLESSING OF DISCOMFORT

And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him anything.  “But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! I will arise and go to my father…”’ Luke 15:16-18

REFERENCE
Luke 15:11-24

The title of today’s devotional looks paradoxical and you may be tempted to ask, “What blessing can be associated with discomfort?” No doubt, discomfort is an inconvenience; it is associated with difficulty and things that are irritable in life. Nevertheless, discomfort can be a blessing to us when it drives us to make changes in our lives that would make us better in the long run.

Take the prodigal son for example; while he was in the thick of his days of discomfort and want, “No one gave him anything.” It was as if, all his ‘support systems’ failed. If somebody had supported him in his prodigal life, that would have delayed his day of ‘coming to himself.’ Thus, his affliction became the catalyst for his awakening. Discomfort often opens our ears to discipline and our hearts to receive instructions. So, if you are presently in a place of discomfort, don’t despair, things can change, and you can be the architect of that change.  How?

If we never feel uncomfortable about our lot or place in life, we will never strive to be better, we will not see the need to aspire to greater or bigger things. If mankind never felt the discomfort of walking long distances in the hot sun, we may not have cars today, if we never got tired with waiting for months to communicate with friends in faraway countries, we may not have had the telephone and the internet today. So, like the prodigal son, let your discomfort make you to think and plan your next move towards a more fulfilling life.  You may have found yourself in a trade, business or job that barely gives you fulfillment or takes care of your bills; you feel so uncomfortable but you are still there. Rather than despair, let the discomfort make you engage in strategic thinking and become the springboard that pushes you to change your approach and bring out the creator, entrepreneur or problem solver in you.

You can use whatever situation that seems like a disadvantage to reinvent yourself. Don’t just be content with the discomfort, do something positive about it, strategically think and consider all the options available to you, and take bold steps that would bring the change for a better version of you, this year.

PHOTO QUOTE

ADDITIONAL STUDY
Psalm 119:67&71, Romans 8:28, & I Chronicles 4:9-10

PRAYER POINT
Ask for wisdom to guide you in making strategic decisions that would take you from the place of discomfort to a place of elevation.