How to Stop Slumbering Through Life | Vera Chin

"You are what you love."
Ann Voskamp

If that is true, then what happens when we love comfort more than calling?

If we love sleep, ease, and uninterrupted flow, things I personally enjoy, do we then slowly drift through life half awake? I know there are seasons when I feel that way. Slumbering, not because we are lazy, but because we resist.

I have noticed this in myself.

When love costs me something, when it interrupts rest, routine, stability, or even a much needed night’s sleep, my instinct is often to ask God to remove the problem rather than invite Him to grow something in me through it.

Yet Christ did not overcome by avoidance. He overcame by love.

Love that stayed awake.
Love that endured.
Love that chose obedience over comfort.

Perhaps growth is not about avoiding disruption, but about building tenacity through love every time life changes shape.

Every interruption is an invitation.

Love Is Not Separate From Life

Once, while typing a note, my phone autocorrected the word life to love. I remember pausing, wondering if that was accidental at all.

What if love is life?

No love, no life.
No love, no movement.
No love, no legacy.

I do not want to merely go through life.
Or pass through it quietly.

I want to leave trails.
To blaze paths.
To overcome.
To leave something behind that blesses others long after I am gone.

Scripture says:

"I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing."
Genesis 12:2

I used to shrink back from that verse, afraid it sounded prideful. But now I see it differently.

What if wanting your life to matter is not arrogance, but agreement with God?

If the Spirit of God lives in me and is alive in me, then His promises are not theoretical. They are meant to be evident.

Not for my glory, but so good can be dispensed through my life, even beyond my lifetime.

Love That Costs Us Forms Us

Choosing love when it is inconvenient shapes us more than it serves us.

It costs sleep.
It costs ease.
It costs the illusion of control.

Love is not a mechanism for producing outcomes. It is a posture of obedience. When we choose love without demanding results, something unseen is formed within us, often long before anything changes around us.

Love is not chosen because it guarantees success, but because it aligns us with God’s heart.

Fruit may come later. It may not come in the way we expect.
But obedience is never wasted.

Sometimes the greatest transformation is not what love changes around us, but who love is shaping us to become.

Nearness to God Often Looks Smaller Than We Expect

There is a verse that keeps returning to me:

"Love and faithfulness meet together; righteousness and peace kiss each other."
Psalm 85:10-11

There is something holy about willingness.
About choosing to serve in unseen, humble places simply because it brings us nearer to God.

Not chasing elevation.
Not demanding recognition.
Just choosing nearness.

We often imagine closeness with God will feel dramatic or extraordinary. Yet more often, it looks like quiet faithfulness. Small yeses. Hidden obedience. Love expressed in ordinary moments.

Childlike Surrender and the Gaze of a Father

I love watching my children sleep.

When they were younger especially, their bodies would completely surrender. Arms open. Faces relaxed. No striving. No self protection.

Watching them filled me with ideas of how to bring them joy.

I imagine God looking at us the same way.

And I wonder, when did I trade surrender for control?
When did rest become resistance instead of trust?

What does it feel like to be truly adored by a father?
And even more, what does it feel like to know you are loved by your Heavenly Father, the King of the universe, not just theologically, but tangibly?

I am still learning.

But I know this much.

Love that stays awake.
Love that surrenders.
Love that chooses inconvenience for the sake of obedience.

That kind of love wakes us up.

👉 Stay Awake With Me

If this reflection resonated with you, I would love to hear your thoughts.

Take a quiet moment to ask yourself:
Where might God be inviting me to stay awake instead of drifting toward comfort?

If you are on a journey of leading yourself well, growing in faith, and living intentionally, you are always welcome to stay connected as I share more reflections and leadership insights.

🤍 Vera
Leadership & Communication Coach
Founder of The Honesty Lab & VeraChin.com