God is more concerned with your character than he is with your comfort.
When we are pushed out of our comfort zone, when we persevere through trials, through hard things, we come out of it more refined, our character is forged and revealed. As we grow, we can begin to “count it all joy” when we face more trials, as James 1 says, because we have seen and experienced the benefits of perseverance. We can embrace the challenges because we value the maturity. We know it will build our character. The ancient Greeks had a term, Arete, that in it’s original context was culturally defined, or translated as manliness. It was used by Plato, Aristotle, and others.
To the Greeks, Arete was the pinnacle of what it meant to have character. It was what a real man looked like to them. Virtue, valor, skill and strength in battle, moral excellence, courage, among other attributes. The authors of the New Testament knew this word, the significance and depth of it, and it is used in several instances of scripture, namely 2 Peter 1 (virtue). It should be seen as a charge for Christian Men. Pursue Arete. Why? Because the world needs men of God with high character. Men who embrace challenges, who don’t run away or quit. Because 2 Peter 1:8 says that if these things be in you, you will not be barren (lazy) or unfruitful (no results). The ancient Greek warriors believed you couldn’t even call yourself a man unless you had character. We need to go back to the ancient wisdom, we need to pursue the standard God has set, and we need leave our places of isolation, and be in community where we hold each other accountable to the pursuit of high character.