Clarksville, TN – Have you ever stepped outside your door on a beautiful, clear, and sunny day then taken a deep breath of fresh air, and thanked God for His wonderful creation?
But what if the next morning is gray and rainy? Does it automatically make you feel a little depressed as you look out the window? Maybe you don’t say it out loud, but how do you feel? Are you in the habit of thanking God only for what you want? And are you in the habit of grumbling when things don’t go your way?
So what’s wrong with a little complaining? It’s no big right? What difference does it make? It can make all the difference in the world. Everything depends on how we respond to the little things in life.Grumbling comes so easily to all of us that we often don’t realize we’re doing it. But grumbling is the very opposite of thanksgiving, a complaint is the opposite of trust.
The dictionary defines a complaint as an accusation. By complaining and grumbling we are actually accusing God of mismanaging the details of our lives. The attitude of praise releases the power of God into our lives, and the attitude of murmuring and complaining blocks that power.
“And don’t grumble as some of them did, for that is why God sent His angel of death to destroy them. All these events happened to them as examples for us. They were written down to warn us, who live at the time when this age is drawing to a close.” (I Corinthians 10:10-11 Living) Paul was speaking about the behavior of the Israelites on their wanderings from Egypt to the Promised Land. So what did they do and what were the terrible consequences?” Now when the people complained, it displeased the Lord; for the Lord heard it, and His anger was aroused. So the fire of the lord burned among them, and consumed some in the outskirts of the camp.” (Numbers 11:1 NKJV)
The Israelites fussed and complained about the petty things that didn’t go their way in spite of how God always met their needs. Patiently, God humored His murmuring children, again and again meeting their needs, until it became obvious that they wouldn’t learn. Forty years the Israelites wondered and every time something went wrong they complained wanting to go back to Egypt.
It took them forty years to cover less than 200 miles. Even with women, children, and cattle, they could have covered the distance in a few weeks. They were delayed because they murmured and refused to trust that God would keep His promise to take care of their every need.
God was patient for forty years, though they tried His patience. He kept right on doing His miracles for them to see. But God says, “I was very angry with them, for their hearts were always looking somewhere else instead of up to me, and they never found the paths, I wanted them to follow.” (Hebrews 3:10) Petty complaints kept the Israelites out of their Promised Land. Our complaints and murmuring against God in the little things can keep us from entering into the perfect plan He has for our lives.
God has a place of perfect rest prepared for us. And I don’t mean after death, I mean now. It is that state of perfect trust in Him that we can all enter. But in order to do so, we must give up our sin of unbelief, our grumbling, murmurings, and complaints.
I believe the first step in rehabilitation with grumbling or any sin is to first admit and confess it before God. Repent and ask God’s forgiveness and make a clear decision not to fall into that sin again. We then ask God to remove the sin from us and to give us increased faith and strength to withstand temptation. At last we thank Him for it and proceed on faith, knowing that it has been done.
Once we make an agreement with God not to grumble and promise instead to thank Him for every little thing that used to make us complain, we can expect Him to go to work. In practice, we will find that God will bring into our lives the very kinds of circumstances that used to trigger our grumbling. When you see them coming, thank and praise God, because He’s using those very incidents to bring about change in us.
Before they made us stumble, now they will show us God’s strength and serve to increase our faith. Accepting every little thing that happens with an attitude of thanksgiving will release the power of God in and through us, and we will soon experience a feeling of joy as well. But don’t look for the feeling as a sign. Our praise and thanksgiving must be based on faith in God’s Word, not on our feelings.
“Do all things without complaining and disputing that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world. Holding fast the Word of Life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain.” “Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. For me to write the same things to you isn’t tedious, but for you it is safe.” (Philippians 2:14-16, 3:1 NKJV)