Complain or Glorify?


Do all things without grumbling
Philippians 2:14

In Corrie Ten Boom’s book The Prison Letters we find the following story. For those who don’t know Corrie Ten Bloom (Cornelia Arnolda Johanna "Corrie" ten Boom was a Dutch watchmaker and later a writer who worked with her father, Casper ten Boom, her sister Betsie ten Boom and other family members to help many Jews escape the Nazi Holocaust during World War II by hiding them in her home). 

The barracks where Corrie ten Boom and her sister, Betsy, were kept in the Nazi concentration camp, Ravensbruck, were terribly overcrowded and flea-infested. They had been able to miraculously smuggle a Bible into the camp, and in that Bible they had read that in all things they were to give thanks and that God can use anything for good.

Betsy decided that this meant thanking God for the fleas. This was too much for Corrie, who said she could do no such thing. Betsy insisted, so Corrie gave in and prayed to God, thanking him even for the fleas.

Over the next several months a wonderful, but curious, thing happened: They found that the guards never entered their barracks.

This meant that the women were not assaulted. It also meant that they were able to do the unthinkable, which was to hold open Bible studies and prayer meetings in the heart of a Nazi concentration camp. Through this, countless numbers of women came to faith in Christ.

Only at the end did they discover why the guards had left them alone and would not enter into their barracks: It was because of the fleas.

If we’re not careful we can all find ourselves grumbling even at the tiniest thing. Complaining starts almost immediately after we’re born and continues throughout our lives.  Even before we can put it into words we put it into crying and screaming.  As children, we complained about wanting our desired cartoon show, vegetables and dressing up. As adults we complain because our wait is too long, our food isn’t exactly like we want it, etc.

There are various ways we grumble.  Some voice their complaints while others mumble under their voice and still others grumble on the inside only.  What really is grumbling and complaining?  Is grumbling all that bad anyway?

We may not think that the sins of the tongue are all that bad; however, we must understand that the writers of Scripture place them right up there with sins like murder, adultery, stealing, and others.  Grumbling is no small thing.

It’s not by accident that Paul, just as soon as he writes that we are to work out our own salvation, brings this sin to the immediate forefront.  This is an area that affects most people, including most Christians.

The Bible is full of complainers.  The first complainer was the first man.  Adam complained to God.  He told God that it was God’s fault that Adam sinned. In Genesis 3:12 we read The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.” Adam shows us what is at the heart of grumbling and complaining.

Complaining is a selfish mind-set that declares, I’m not getting what I want and what I deserve. Because this is done in the realm of God’s sovereignty, what we are really saying is, God, You’re not being good to me. We have learned this very well from our first parent, Adam.

Why does God hate it so much? Grumbling and complaining shows a lack of humility. Grumbling is an accusation against God’s provision whether we realize it or not. If a child is complaining about his or her circumstances, this is ultimately an accusation against the provisions of the father. In the same way, being discontent is a declaration against the goodness of God. We are choosing to not be happy with our present circumstances.

What have we complained about just today? What do we grumble against God about our lives? Maybe we are not happy in our job. Maybe we are not happy with our marriage. Maybe we are not happy about our family. Maybe we are not happy with where we live. Maybe we are not happy with how much money we make or how many possessions we have. But listen to what the apostle Paul says. “Do all things without grumbling or disputing.” That is a showstopper command. Everything we do must be done without complaining.

Grumbling and complaining should and will cease in the life of the Christian as they practically apply certain truths they profess to believe. We must remember that God’s purposes and our own do not always match. Most people are concerned primarily with being happy. They want to have enjoyable experiences and pleasurable circumstances. God’s greatest concern is our character as He conforms us into the image of Christ

Dear Friends, have you ever been guilty of grumbling and complaining? Grumbling and disputing are things that should not be part of the life of a Christian. This Lenten Season let us make every effort to refrain from grumbling or disputing. May we complain less and glorify God more.

God Bless you.
Location: Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India

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