PSALM 103:1-5 – Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

THEME OF THE DAY. BEFORE YOU COMPLAIN. It might rank high on the “most tolerated sins” list among Christians. Maybe even “Tolerated sin number one.” It is the sin of complaining. Yes, it is sin and, yes, it is serious. First, it is sin because of its violation of a clear command. The Apostle Paul wrote to the Philippian believers – Do all things without grumbling(complaining) or disputing (Philippians 2:14). And notice what he said – “No complaining about anything.” That means people, circumstances, situations, inconveniences, altered schedules, the weather, politics, church . . . everything. Based on that simple truth, see how easy this becomes a tolerated sin? But it is not only a tolerated sin, it is a serious sin. Granted, all sin is serious, yet complaining is “double” serious for the two messages it sends to our God.

First, complaining of any kind is us looking up to heaven and saying, “I don’t like Your will unfolding in my life. I am not happy with what You are doing in my life through this situation.” And to peel this back a little more, complaining is actually rebellion against the will of God unfolding in our lives. Pretty serious stuff, huh?

Another message we send to heaven is as equally disrespectful as the first. Any complaining in our lives is telling God, “I really don’t believe You have my best interest in mind based on what is happening in my life.” Ouch! None of us would really say that to the Lord, but all of us say that to the Lord by our complaining. Think about it. Is God sovereign over all things? Absolutely, and we are glad, but before we rejoice in such glorious sovereignty, that means He is also sovereign over the situation, circumstance, and relationship that is tempting us to complain. And did He not say, “All things work together for good to those who love Him?” (Romans 8:28). Well, “all things” must include what might be tempting us to complain at this very moment in our lives.

So, how may we take complaining off the “Most tolerated sin” list in our lives? Two ways. First, remember the two messages we identified above that we send to God when we complain. This alone will make us “God-dependent” and cry out for daily grace to help us avoid complaining. The other thing to do is in today’s scripture. When tempted to complain, stop and count all the blessings God has bestowed upon us. Complaining often occurs because we forget God’s goodness to us. A man once said, “I complained I had no shoes until I saw a man that had no feet.” Think about what God has done in our lives when the temptation to complain comes our way. It will defeat any and all of them.

PRAYER: “Father, forgive me when I complain first instead of counting my blessings from you first.”

QUOTE: “We will find our complaining less when our praise is more.”