The Madness of Hope

The Art of Being Uncomfortable

As many know, my daughter is on a seven week mission trip to Africa. She was accepted into a two week program by our church (Through Both Eyes of a Mom ) and then it turned into five extra weeks in South Africa (I’ve Entrusted My Daughter to a Stranger ) After much prodding by her loving mother, she finally began a blog. Here is her first post, written this week. The truths here are applicable to each of us, no matter where we are on our journey in life. As Americans we tend to think the whole world revolves around our need to be comfortable. To have the best new camera equipment or the new apple product that will make life easier, or more comfortable. We carry around pounds and pounds worth of luggage when traveling to make sure we have everything necessary to make ourselves comfortable. We eat the same foods; we drink the same drinks and if you’re me you might even carry around your pillow across the world, to make sure you’re comfortable. But how boring does that sound, how selfish does that sound? Why don’t we risk our comfortableness for the sake of others having more? Or even risk being comfortable for an adventure, for growth. I think we miss out on so many things when trying to stay in our “comfort zones”. And so, Life becomes a routine. Imagine if every day you did one thing that made you feel uncomfortable. You did one thing that made you a little nervous, or even made you want to cry. Imagine how much you would grow in that time into a whole new person just by being flexible, doing something different. Experiencing the unknown and embracing it! I write this as I am sitting in the airport of Nairobi, Kenya. By myself, but sitting next to my iPod, iPhone, camera, my three lenses, my diet coke and chocolate, my pillow AND the laptop I am writing on as well as the luggage underneath the plane I’m about to board. As I’m sitting here I’m starting to think of exhilarating it would be to take just one of those items, leave the rest behind and start my new adventure. But, maybe traveling to South Africa alone is enough discomfort for one day. As I face the discomfort of the trip that awaits me, the weeks I’ll be staying with people I’ve never met. The work I will be doing which I’m still unsure of and the idea of standing in front of a bunch of people and sharing the love of God. There’s something that makes my heart beat a little faster, something that makes my stomach a little nervous to where I’m shaking a little inside. At the same time I’m thinking this is the best kind of feeling. The kind of feeling that I know that I’m being stretched into a new person and facing fears I never really wanted to face and it might actually be fun. If you enjoyed this, visit her blog called To Africa And Back.