Another Kind of Comfort

In my last post I shared with you our fun visit to the charming town of Comfort, TX.  It wasn't very comfortable because of the heat, but it made for a great afternoon date!  We found good chairs, outdoor fans and misters, and cold drinks to pass our time and endure that dog day of south Texas summer.  It's funny how we so earnestly seek out ways to take care of ourselves.  We have survival instincts gone first world mania.

We all like being comfortable.  We like modern day conveniences, good health, stable finances, successful relationships, a good reputation, great entertainment, and yummy food.  All of these things make us comfortable, and they aren't bad things.  But I know that they can trick us into thinking they really work.

How many times have you eaten a wonderful meal and never been hungry again in your life?  Has an excellent film followed by great discussion with wonderful friends satisfied you so much that you never did anything fun again?

These comforts we seek are fleeting, so we keep seeking them in the same form over and over like we're trying to live out the definition of insanity.  I think we are designed to seek comfort, but these things are simply reflections or clues as to what we're really supposed to be after.

We're going about finding comfort all wrong because we're trying to find comfort.  That's right.  If we want lasting comfort, we shouldn't be seeking comfort itself.  We should be seeking truth.

C.S. Lewis writes in the classic Mere Christianity:

“In religion, as in war and everything else, comfort is the one thing you cannot get by looking for it. If you look for truth, you may find comfort in the end: if you look for comfort you will not get either comfort or truth - only soft soap and wishful thinking to begin with and, in the end, despair.”

What will you decide will satisfy you today, and will it last until tomorrow?