This past weekend I attempted to roller-skate at Thrills on Wheels. I say “attempt” because I spent most of my time in the rink clinging to the side as if it was the only thing saving me from total embarrassment and a bruised tailbone. Though I did not achieve anything that remotely resembled skating, I managed to leave with my dignity mostly intact. It was definitely a comical, getting-out-of-my-comfort-zone experience, but that is not quite what I mean by “getting past awkward.” No, what I am referring to has to do with talking to people.
Most of the people I have encountered at Harding are relatively gregarious, a fact that has been attested to this week by All-Club Devo and induction activities. But I think many of us (and I include myself in this) tend to shy away from conversations that we consider awkward. These conversations take many forms, but the common denominator is that we avoid them because they make us uncomfortable even though it is beneficial and often essential that we have them.
For starters, once we find our circle of friends at school or at church, a lot of us become complacent and are less inclined to meet new people. We stay within our cliques and fail to reach out to visitors or peers we have not gotten to know well. While it is commendable to nurture the friendships we already have, we should not do so at the expense of trying to form new relationships. It could be that the people we are unacquainted with are bffs-in-the-making, or it could be that they need someone to reach out to them. If we let the awkwardness of initiating conversation with them inhibit us, we will never know what blessings could come from forming those connections.
What can be harder than meeting new people, though, is lovingly confronting people we know already. Perhaps we have a friend or classmate who has hurt us personally. We could easily neglect to say anything about it, which would in turn perhaps allow the person’s undesirable behavior to continue or for our resentment to grow. Or we could complain about the problem to every friend we have except the one with whom we have an issue. But the scriptural model is to go to that person privately, at least at first, to seek correction of the problem and to bring about reconciliation (Matthew 18:15-17).
Perhaps harder still is admitting when we are the ones who have wronged someone else. Pride can keep us from apologizing for our mistakes, and we might secretly hope that no one calls us out for our poor decisions. However, just as we have an obligation to privately address our concerns when we feel that we have been wronged, so too we have an obligation to seek to restore relationships when we are at fault, irrespective of how awkward it might be (Matthew 5:23-26).
Most importantly, we need to become more comfortable sharing the good news of Christ. Rather than being inhibited by what we might perceive as the awkwardness of talking about Jesus, we should be overflowing with excitement and gratitude for the salvation he brings, and we should feel compelled to spread the gospel to everyone who has not yet received it.
When we talk to people even though it makes us uncomfortable, wonderful things can happen, like forming new friendships, restoring old ones or bringing others to a knowledge of our Lord and Savior. Therefore, happiness is getting past awkward.
