They took a rat and put it in the water to see how long it could last before it drowned. After 16 minutes, the rat couldn’t swim anymore and drowned. Then they put a second rat in the water for 13 minutes, because they knew it could last for 16. Rats could make it for 16 minutes. After 13 minutes, they took this rat out of the water while it was still alive. Then they waited a little bit and put the rat a few minutes, and then put the rat back in.
When they put the rat back in, how much longer did it last? Again, the first one lasted 16 minutes. This one was in for 13 minutes, taken out, and put back in. How much longer did it last? Three minutes? Maybe it had a break. So it lasted six minutes or seven minutes. When they took the second rat out and put it back in, the rat lasted in the water 60 hours. 60 hours. What happened was, it had been put in once, and it was comfortable being uncomfortable. He knew, “I could do this. Look, I was in the water. I even came out of the water. I could do this.” Then, when he was put back in the water, he had so much more strength.
Our job is to exercise our uncomfortable muscles. When you have an uncomfortable conversation to be had, have it. When you have an uncomfortable meal to go to, go to it. When you have something you’re not in the mood to do and you know the right thing is to go, then go. Do it. Because when you exercise those muscles, you become prepared to be a Jew.
At times, people have to deal with real tragedies—hopefully not so much—but dealing with uncomfortableness is part of every single day of your life. If you’re spending your life avoiding responding to the message, avoiding showing up, avoiding having the conversation, avoiding living through a little level of insecurity or lack of knowledge of what the future holds, or avoiding the fact that you’re a little uncomfortable, or avoiding the fact that you’re going to be a little jealous and, because of that, you want to hermit yourself into a hole, it doesn’t work that way.
The says, talking about people yesterday. A Rabbi came from Israel, and he shared this thought with me on this pasuk (verse). The pasuk says, which means, “On the beautiful green pasture he puts me to sit, but he guides me to the waters.” So he says, “What does this mean?” So he said, “What it means is—I forgot who he said it from. Is that we all want to walk and pasture.” The sheep want to stay by the grass. The sheep want to stay grazing, because it’s comfortable here. “Let me sit here.”
But Hashem says, “No.” The shepherd, God, Hashem, tells us, “I’m taking you somewhere else, which may not be as comfortable but is better for you. I’m taking you to the water.” So it’s true: your comfortable space might be where you’d rather be, but your uncomfortable space is where you need to be. Sometimes Hashem says, “I am going to take you from here to there because that’s where you need to be. That’s where you belong.” Get comfortable being uncomfortable. Life isn’t made for that perfect moment.