I have a huge complaint. Actually, I have a few of them. But complaining is a sin, so I shouldn't. I am such a complainer sometimes. I am sick of complaining. Then I complain about being tired of being sick of my complaining. Man, I am sick and tired of being tired of being sick of my complaining.
I complain a lot. A lot less now, that my wife has been showing me that I can be a real whiner sometimes. God is working on me.
But it’s a “respectable” sin, right? No harm done, right? It’s natural, everyone does it, not a big deal.
Uh, wrong, wrong, technically since we are all sinners, doesn’t make it right, and wrong, respectively.
We choose to complain. It’s a choice. Let’s acknowledge that first. It IS a sin, it hurts ourselves (we become depressed in our negative thinking), it questions God’s sovereignty (never a good idea), and it affects others (ever been around a constant complainer? ugh).
I love how James MacDonald defines complaining: It is: expressing dissatisfaction with a circumstance that is not wrong and about which I am doing nothing to correct. . If you are expressing dissatisfaction because something is inherently wrong, that is not complaining. Or if you are trying to fix a situation, it is not complaining. But if these two don’t apply, you are complaining.
Not only do we do it verbally, but how often I catch myself doing it inwardly! “I don’t like this, I don’t prefer this, I wish I had my way, boo-hoo.”
It is a trendy thing, too. Websites are devoted to allowing people to post complaints, as I first learned, again, from James MacDonald. So I decided to check one out personally. For research. (I didn‘t post anything.)
I went to mybiggestcomplaint.com. One person actually was griping about people using the brand name “Styrofoam” for things not made by that brand. Wow, really? People that do that should be fined…or shot… or SOMETHING, for Pete’s sake! We have to stop the misuse of the Styrofoam name, those people are running roughshod in our society!
Enough sarcasm. That is silly, but true. And maybe you and I say, “At least I complain about important things.” Does that matter?
Numbers 11:1 - And the people complained in the hearing of the LORD about their misfortunes, and when the LORD heard it, his anger was kindled, and the fire of the LORD burned among them and consumed some outlying parts of the camp.
God doesn’t give a pass for complaining about adversity. There is no gage on how bad things can get before God allows you to complain.
The Apostle Paul wrote: Do ALL things without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world… (Philippians 2:14-15)
The Bible teaches us that we are to replace sinful habits with Godly habits. So you don’t just stop complaining, youreplace it with thankfulness. How do I do that? Part II is coming…
p.s. - moving out of Whinersberg