By Brother Matt Henson

 

What did you get for Christmas? This question has been asked in our family several times as we have gathered at different family and church events. What was your favorite gift? Did you get what you asked for? Now, I will admit few people have asked me this question, but I guess once you get older, nobody wants to hear about socks, t-shirts, and gift cards.

 

My wife asks each year for “comfy, soft pajamas.” These include “Joyspun” at Wal-Mart or “Muk Luk” found at Sierra, TJ Maxx, or Marshalls. She likes them because they are soft, lightweight, and warm. They are comfortable and perfect for slow, quiet, restful weekend days at home. She likes her comfort.

 

Are we not all the same way? We like comfort. We like our lives to be slow, quiet, and restful. We want everything in life to go smoothly without any major changes, frustrations, or concerns. At the beginning of the New Year, we hear people talking about hopes for the New Year and for the year to be “better than last year.” We don’t want our plans upset and we want life to be easy, calm, and at least manageable. We will do everything we can to keep the comfort in our lives. If it seems we are entering a situation that is not easy, we will tend to give up, quit, or defer back to safer days.

 

January 6 we celebrated Epiphany, the coming of the Magi to see Jesus, the one who is born king of the Jews. When the Magi came to Jerusalem seeking information about Jesus’ birth, we read, “When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.” (Matthew 2:3)

 

Herod was disturbed. His power and authority were likely going to be challenged if the king of the Jews had been born. He was disturbed because he would be powerless and was uncertain as to how the king of the Jews would seek to overtake him. He was disturbed because his plans would be shaken, and he would no longer be in charge of his destiny.

 

I think we are like Herod when Jesus calls us to surrender and give him our lives. If we take Jesus seriously when he says, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me” (Luke 9:23, NLT), our lives are disturbed. We are no longer the one’s in charge of our plan for our lives. We are no longer in charge of our destiny. We are willingly relinquishing control to Jesus, knowing that the Lord will at times call us out of our comfort zones to live our lives in service to Him.

 

Self-surrender is complete and total abandon of my way, for the Ways of Jesus. When I come to the place of surrendering myself fully to Jesus, it disturbs my life.

 

Jesus (the Kingdom of God) disturbs my sense of pride and selfishness

Jesus (the Kingdom of God) disturbs my plan, asking me to surrender

Jesus (the Kingdom of God) disturbs my comfort, calling me to follow Him.

 

In the New Year, it would be easy to seek comfort and ease of life. In his book, “Underground Church,” Brian Sanders writes, “We have to regularly remind each other of the greatness of God, the desperation of the world, and the significance of what we do. Otherwise, the default settings kick in and we all drift back to comfort, security, and middle-class malaise” (Page 152). It is my prayer in the New Year that we will not fall into the rut of comfort, missing out on Jesus’ call to us to do hard things, go beyond our comfort zones, and seek to follow Him wherever He may lead. I pray we will be disturbed in the New Year.

 

A prayer attributed to Sir Francis Drake will be a prayer guiding my life in the New Year:

 

Disturb us, Lord, when

We are too well pleased with ourselves,

When our dreams have come true

Because we have dreamed too little,

When we arrived safely

Because we sailed too close to the shore.

 

Disturb us, Lord, when

With the abundance of things we possess

We have lost our thirst

For the waters of life;

Having fallen in love with life,

We have ceased to dream of eternity

And in our efforts to build a new earth,

We have allowed our vision

Of the new Heaven to dim.

 

Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly,

To venture on wider seas

Where storms will show your mastery;

Where losing sight of land,

We shall find the stars.

 

We ask You to push back

The horizons of our hopes;

And to push into the future

In strength, courage, hope, and love.