How Routine and Comfort Keep You Spiritually Asleep
I always thought I wanted a quiet life three kids, a marriage to either a police officer or a fireman, living somewhere calm like a nice part of Long Island. I imagined myself teaching in a classroom until retirement, surrounded by the comforts of middle-class suburbia. Just like in the movies. Engaged by 23, married by 25, and settled into the rhythm of a “normal” life. Just your average ‘Joanne’.
But as I got older, my perspective changed.
For one, I stopped romanticizing officers as my intellectual equals. And by the time I was 25, not only was I not engaged—I had already left the United States entirely at 23. What followed was a rollercoaster of life experiences that were anything but traditional, but I can honestly say I don’t regret any of it. Those ups and downs may not have fit into the picture-perfect dream I once held, but they shaped me into who I am today.
In the last 40 years, I’ve gained priceless insight. I’ve lived and worked across class lines, upper, middle, and lower and jumped between cultures and lifestyles. Had I stayed that “average Joanne” in Long Island, I may have never grown spiritually. It was the hardship, the stretching, the uncertainty that pushed me closer to God and deeper into my calling.
Even my last attempt at a “normal” life in Barcelona—working at a prestigious school, living in a small town working a mundane 9–5 routine filled with small talk, structured vacations, and weekend football practices for my son; but apparently it wasn’t where God wanted me to settle. He had other plans. Bigger ones. Not because I was failing but because I deserved more than a script. I had more to offer and He wanted more from me.
I once worked for a wonderful woman who once represented the very life I wanted. She had it all on paper perfect children, a stable husband, a new nice apartment, a good teaching career. So , Imagine the shock I felt when I found out she had taken her own life. She jumped from her middle-class building rooftop, while her kids and husband were out. I was stunned. I had admired her. I didn’t know all the details, only that she had battled anxiety from adolescence and occasionally had to be hospitalized for weeks at a time. Now knowing what I know about spiritual warfare, NPCs, and the invisible forces at work, I still wonder. One thing I know for sure was, she never had any relationship with God. Oh, how that could have made a difference!
That’s what holds you. That is what sustains you when life gets dark. A relationship with God is what allows you to walk through fire and not be burned, because the Lord walks with you. "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you."
— Isaiah 43:2
Medication may help for a time. Money and comfort might distract you for a season. But only God can truly anchor you.
Comfort is Not Always Purpose
Many people confuse comfort with purpose. We're told to chase stability, climb the career ladder, get the house, marry by a certain age, and follow a linear path laid out by societal expectations. But what if comfort is just a cage with soft walls? A safe life might keep you from pain, but it can also keep you from purpose. God doesn’t call His chosen ones to sleepwalk through life on autopilot. He uses disruptions, loss, betrayal, and hardship not as punishment, but as divine interruptions. These uncomfortable experiences force you to pray, to seek, to look beyond the surface. If your life is too quiet and uninterrupted, you may never realize that you’re spiritually stagnant. Routine can numb your spirit, while discomfort often awakens your soul.
The World Rewards Sameness, God Calls for Separation
The system of the world runs on uniformity and predictability. Schools train you to think the same, jobs want you to behave the same, and society applauds you for following the script. But God doesn't call His people to fit in—He calls them to stand apart. The more you blend in, the easier it is for spiritual forces to lull you into slumber. Romans 12:2 makes it clear: “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” When you’re too caught up in keeping appearances or “staying on track,” you’re likely following someone else’s blueprint, not God’s. Being chosen often requires you to walk alone, resist trends, and choose what’s right over what’s popular. Sameness may earn the world’s approval, but separation earns God’s presence.
The Illusion of the “Perfect Life” is Often a Trap
We grow up dreaming of the picture-perfect life, but the truth is, many who appear to have “made it” are silently suffering. Behind the curated smiles and status symbols are people battling depression, anxiety, spiritual confusion, or worse. The enemy doesn’t mind you having worldly success if it keeps you distracted and disconnected from your divine identity. One of the devil’s greatest weapons is a false sense of fulfillment. You may look alive on the outside, but be spiritually dead inside. The "perfect" life can easily become a silent grave if God isn't at the center of it. Without Him, even the most luxurious life becomes cheap.
Wilderness Seasons Build Warriors
In the Bible, no true leader or prophet was ever birthed without first going through the wilderness. Moses spent 40 years in exile before leading Israel. Joseph was thrown in a pit and forgotten before he sat beside Pharaoh. Even Jesus fasted for 40 days in isolation before beginning His ministry. If you're chosen, you will go through fire—but not to burn, to be refined. The wilderness is God’s way of stripping away everything you don’t need so He can reveal who you really are. These seasons may feel like rejection or failure, but they are divine training grounds. They teach you resilience, faith, discernment, and spiritual power. It’s in those silent, painful places that your relationship with God deepens, and you begin to realize the calling over your life.
Routine Can Mute the Voice of God
When life is filled with the noise of daily habits, appointments, small talk, and tasks, it’s easy to drown out the voice of God. Many live in such a rhythm that they don’t even realize they've stopped listening to the Spirit. But when routine is broken whether by hardship, relocation, or unexpected loss—you suddenly find yourself in a position to hear again. That quiet whisper you ignored for years becomes clear. God often speaks in silence, in stillness, in the in-between moments. If you're always busy keeping your routine intact, you may never pause long enough to hear divine direction. Sometimes God allows your routine to fall apart on purpose, so He can speak to you without the noise of your comfort.
This is why comfort isn’t always a blessing for a chosen one. Sometimes the comforts of this world are a trap, designed to keep you asleep, spiritually dull and disconnected from your true mission. The so-called perfect life isn’t always the right life. Especially for those chosen to carry more.
