ANDERSON CHURCH OF CHRIST
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Complaints... By Kyle Marks
What do you do when things go wrong? How do you react? Are you a person who steps up and puts on a positive attitude or are you a complainer? Yes, we’ve all done it from time to time with issues that just don’t go our way. We fall into the snare of complaining about this and whining about that. It’s easy to whine when we’re making excuses for our failures. Yet, the Bible clearly says that complaining is a sin and gives us some advice and inspiration about complaining. Complaining shows an attitude that we are an ungrateful and bitter person and it often tests God’s patience.
While the Bible says that complaining is a sin, it also states that it can lead to further disobedience. Along with complaining comes bitterness. If you complain too much or focus on all the negative things, you can lose sight of all the good things God does in your life. This can lead to an attitude where you lose faith and cause others to lose faith too. It is simply a fact that things will go wrong in your life. In school there might be a pop quiz or you might be given a long term paper to complete. You might break up with your steady friend or you might even have a fight with a friend. These things happen. You can spend your time complaining about them while you take your eyes off of God, or you can find a way to make things better. You can remember all the other things God has provided. Not only will you be happier, but you will be a more positive Christian example to everyone around you.
If you have time to whine and complain about something, then you have the time to do something about it. This quote was by Anthony J. D’Angelo, and comes from the College Blue Book. “We all need to learn to accept in silence the minor aggravations, cultivate the gift of being reserved in speech and conduct, and consume your own smoke with an extra draft of hard work, so that those about you may not be annoyed with the filth and grunge of your complaints.” It is no use to grumble and complain; it’s just as cheap and easy to rejoice when God sorts out the weather and sends rain. Why ? Well, rain is my choice as it gives life. Wherever you go, no matter what the weather, always bring your own sunshine. The tendency to whine and complain may be taken as the surest sigh and symptom of a diminutive character and inferior intelligence. You can overcome anything if you don’t bellyache.
We all know people in our lives that are just plain “moody.” It’s almost always inevitable that they will attempt to bring us down. You don’t want to even ask them, “How are you?” because you know the answer will depress you. There is a biblical solution for the one who has no joy. The answer to their problem is Jesus. Throughout every day we are to walk in Him. We are to repent of our sins. We are to spend time in prayer, knowing that God is able to meet our needs, trusting Him to do so. If you don’t get everything you want, try thinking of the things you don’t get that you don’t want. When one is right with God their heart is right, and they become a blessing to all who are around them.
Someone once said, “Happiness is a state of mind...” I would like to go a step farther and say that happiness is a state of the the heart. It flows from the heart and touches every person that it comes in contact with...for Jesus dwells within. The sun shines, warms us, lights us, and we have no curiosity to know why, but we always ask what is the reason for all the evil in this world, for pain, for hunger, for mosquitoes, and for all the silly people. A lousy attitude is a HUGE stumbling block for the unsaved. We are supposed to be the “salt of the earth,” yet the people that know us sometimes don’t even want to be near us. How will they see Jesus in us if we are depressing to be around? Happiness is an attitude. We either make ourselves miserable, or we make our lives happy and strong. The amout of work is the same. |
