The Desire for Our True Comfort Zone

The other day I was visiting my dad at the nursing home. I mentioned that he had a doctor appointment the next day and he made the comment that doctors were a waste of time, that they never did anything for you. When I started telling him all the stuff they did for him he said, "yeah, but they don't know how I'm feeling inside." Well, this comment made me probe a little deeper.  I asked, "What do you feel inside, Daddy?" He looked at me with the saddest eyes and said, "neglect." Now, in years past I may have wanted to say, "Now you know how I felt all my life." But you know, that's not what I thought. I actually felt bad for him. When I think of the word neglect I immediately think of someone who is not cared for. So it upset me that he would feel he wasn't cared for. He's probably had more visits from family in the nursing home than he ever had at home. But visits don't always make a person feel cared for. Honestly, he probably doesn't even remember the visits five minutes after we leave. So perhaps this accounts for his feeling neglected. The only reason I can think he would feel this way would be that he's not at home. Being that he has Alzheimer's he probably misses having something or someone familiar around him at all times. He feels discomfort at an unfamiliar place, surrounded by unfamiliar people.

As I was thinking about this, I got to thinking about how, as Christians, we too can feel a discomfort. This world is not our home. It's just a temporary home. So even though we can function and carry on, our hearts are longing for our true home, our true comfort zone. Think about if you go to a foreign country. While you may have access to the basics of life (food, water, etc), you will still feel awkward, especially if you don't speak the language. And if you are there for a long period of time you will eventually have a strong desire to return to your own home, and to your own family. You will desire to be in that place of comfort.

We are creatures who like to feel comfortable. There are days when I would love to just pray, "Come quickly, Lord Jesus." But when I think about all the lost people that would go to hell if he came today, I am less inclined to pray that even though I may be feeling a weariness in the struggle to live in this world. I don't want to see my loved ones go to hell. I don't want to see your loved ones go there either. God's desire is that all men come to repentance. He is patient. And as believers, that should be our desire too.