I often think of a hobbit’s quiet life and simple pleasures with longing, but there is something about hobbits themselves worthy of reflection. Gandalf sums it up: “There is a lot more in him than you guess, and a deal more than he has any idea of himself.” This can also be said of us. There is more to us than we think or give God credit for.

The first paragraph of the book reads: “In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit…. it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.” Bilbo is a very well to do hobbit. He was respectable, never had an adventure or did anything unexpected. He fit into the mode that hobbits had come to accept as normal. He says, “We are plain quiet folk and I have no use for an adventure.” They are, “Nasty disturbing uncomfortable things.”

Bilbo accumulated and surrounded himself with things he believed necessary for the attainment of the comfort he craved. We call this the “comfort zone.” Stepping outside the comfort zone was an “adventure” that was to be avoided.

We all have our comfort zones; things we gather to ourselves believing, like Bilbo, they will give us some kind of joy, happiness, security, and pleasures. There is nothing evil in comfort or the things we enjoy. They can become evil when we attach ourselves to the creature comforts, giving them a power over us. A heart that becomes attached to the creature comforts takes the way of least resistance and becomes sluggish, self-centered, and uncomfortable with change or being different. We hole up and don’t leave our Shires.

You and I can have a hobbit philosophy. Comfort zones don’t like hassle. Here are some examples: staying in our circle of friends after Mass and not acknowledging others; neglecting the care of our aging parents because it cramps our life style; not sharing our faith because it makes us feel awkward. We avoid going outside our comfort zones.

St. Francis De Sales reminds us that there are many good things in life. The problem, he points out, is that we allow them to surround our hearts and give them a power over us, believing they are necessary to assure our comfort zone. He says, “…the heart of man burdening itself with useless, superfluous and dangerous affections, cannot run after God readily, freely, and easily, which is the true mark of devotion.” By pursuing these things, the Saint says they “put us in danger of becoming undisciplined and disordered” in our pursuit of God.

Like Bilbo, we often find the prospect of taking up our cross and following the heroic path of self-sacrifice, intensely loathsome, unappealing, and to be avoided. Bilbo’s adventure took him outside his comfort zone where he acquired a growth in wisdom and virtue through suffering and sacrifice. He learned that life is not about the pursuit of creature comforts but of love and a willingness to lay down one’s life for others. It’s about relationships and breaking out of our self-made boxes and becoming who God created us to be.

Lent is an opportunity for adventure. It can be nasty as it challenges us to examine our comfort zones. That’s its purpose. Lent calls us to leave our hobbit holes and to enter the adventure of following Christ on the great quest of discipleship.

For Reflection:
What kind of comfort zones do I surround myself with? What are the signs I see in my own life that show my heart is attached to things or persons other than God? What prevents me from freely running after God this Lent? How might I assure myself that Lent will provide me opportunities to enter the adventure of self-discovery?

Prayer:
Lord, I often burden my heart with useless, superfluous and dangerous affections, that prevent me from running after You readily, freely, and easily. Help me this Lent to recognize my comfort zones and give me the courage to enter into the adventure of Lent.

(blogged March 1, 2025)
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