Perspective is the hinge on which our lives turn. We see this in the story of every saint. These men and women faced adversity of every type and kind, some more cruel than others. They lost friends, family, endured exile, suspicion, and torture, gave up the quiet and the comfort for the uncomfortable. Through that crucible, they were remade.

I’ve written many times about comfort and trust, two themes that play out more poignantly each month in our world. It’s easy for us to forget the anxiety of our parents and grandparents as they endured two global wars for freedom, the threat of nuclear apocalypse, and economic collapse. Life today is no simpler, but it is markedly comfortable.

When we’re comfortable, we drift towards mediocrity. Unchallenged, we fall into a malaise in which there is little movement, small momentum, and no growth. The periods in our lives that we look back on with the greatest satisfaction are the times in which we pushed through the difficult things and came out the other side, shockingly, better.

Wincing from pain or shying away from difficulty is a natural reflex. It’s our humanity’s attempt to shield us from danger. But glory is not in idleness, nor is it in sameness. Glory is in the discomfort, where we are pushed to our limits and, at that moment, come into contact with the grace from God to surge us to the next higher level.

Being open to discomfort is an act of courage, and a recognition that we are called to constant renewal. We cannot be truly good, or make room for the better part, if we do not let go of and clear out the things that hold us back.