There are so many different kinds of comfort: spiritual, emotional and physical. Each day, regardless of what country we are living in, we encounter things that make us feel uncomfortable. In Guatemala, there are all sorts of things that make us feel uncomfortable. Sometimes we are uncomfortable because we are tired, dirty, soaking wet and cold. But more importantly, it makes us uncomfortable that there are children who are forced to drop out of school because they cannot afford their uniform or unnecessarily expensive school projects. It makes us uncomfortable when our friend’s mom can’t read the instructions for a recipe because she wasn’t able to go to school. It’s uncomfortable when you need a signature from someone and they can’t write their name. It makes us uncomfortable when our friends have insane amounts of debt because their parents needed medical care. It makes us uncomfortable that people see others in need and do nothing about it.

Don’t get us wrong, we absolutely love what we do. But we would be lying if we said there weren’t days when we want a real shower (hot or cold), a warm bed, and the little things from home. That being said, we are happy. See, the thing is, we often confuse comfort with happiness. We think that happiness is having our warm bed to crawl into at the end of the day, the food we are used to, and everything that makes life just a little easier; but it isn’t. We are able to find more comfort in knowing that it is possible to alleviate a part of people’s suffering. After living within a culture of hardships for so long it makes us feel a sense of guilt to seek after comfort. We have the possibility to buy a plane ticket, go home, and live better than billions of people. But, is our temporary earthly comfort more valuable than letting the world know there is an eternal comfort? In the end, we weren’t made for an easy life. We were created for so much more.

There is comfort from heaven that can calm even the most turbulent storms of life. There is comfort that can overwhelm you as you lay in bed at night freezing cold. Happiness is doing what you were made specifically to do and people do not often that special something by being comfortable.

We hope to forever feel uncomfortable with the suffering of those around us.

“Praise be to God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort.” – 2 Corinthians 1:2