Pushing Through the Unpleasantness

“I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. I will face my fear. I will let it pass through me. When the fear is gone, there will be nothing. Only I will remain.”- from Dune by Frank Herbert (sci-fi novel)

There are plenty of times that I feel uncomfortable, maybe especially here. Things are unfamiliar. Sometimes the seats on the tram are hard (I don’t have as much seat padding as some). Sometimes it’s cold, like today. Sometimes I’m just worried/anxious/nervous about something; it could be many things. In times like those, my natural instinct seems to be to look for a way to avoid the unpleasantness.

Useful ways to avoid unpleasantness may include wearing enough clothing, getting up from the hard seat and standing on the tram, or any host of other things. However, we often fall back on certain habits to avoid the unpleasantness in our lives (at least I do). We may have some compulsive habit that we prefer or, like me, we may have a whole host of ‘bad’ habits we can call on. Some seem innocent enough, others more obviously destructive (like overindulgence in any number of things). These habits give us some sense of control and a way to avoid whatever unpleasantness is afflicting us at the moment. They are ways to escape.

God has been reminding me that the events and circumstances of my life can be dealt with through God as well. Life may bring me into unpleasantness for a reason, but I believe God can bring good out of it. If I avoid the unpleasantness through some compulsive habit, I avoid the opportunity of God’s creative power of transformation as well.

What I need to learn is the lesson from the quote above. If I endure and push through the unpleasantness I face, I will emerge on the other side. I will survive and probably grow stronger for having fought my inner impulse to unhealthy/destructive/less helpful behaviors. All things may be ok for me, but they are definitely not all good for me (1 Corinthians 6.12). That verse ends with “I will not be mastered by anything.” Taking hold of our unpleasantness helps us not to be mastered by those things we do to avoid it.

“Let nothing disturb you, let nothing frighten you. All things are passing. God alone remains.”- Thérèse of Lisieux

I found this quote a few days ago. She had the idea long before Frank Herbert did. I am trying to remember in those unpleasant moments that ‘this too shall pass.’ It may seem a bit trite or cliché, and maybe it is, but it’s also usually true. I have started to practice waiting out or pushing through times when things seem unpleasant. I have to admit that it’s not easy, but it does feel good to wait it out and realize that the unpleasantness does not last, it wanes. Through it, I think God is there with us, hoping that we will be strong enough to push through. Then God has a slightly stronger me to work with in this world. It may not be much, but sometimes it may be everything.