When I Complain
It’s embarrassing how much we complain. Especially as women, the heartbeat of our homes, marriages and families! Sometimes a habitual or learned behavior, sometimes laziness, sometimes the failure of inner reflection. We don’t want to be doing what we are called to do. Can’t I just do something else, Lord? Lately, all of my spiritual reading is talking about crushing our own will, and obediently doing ‘what I am asked to do.’ Then after a brief read, I notice my own complaining…clearly the Lord is trying to do something here.
Monitor your thoughts for the patterns of complaints. You will see the familiar areas that repeat themselves. These are the areas the Lord wants to reform and strip of our pride! The me, me, me. The escape of vocation. The "I will ask but only receive what I want to,” or the refusal to ask for the grace I need. Who said life will be full of effortless joy? Who is the saint that never had to work hard to overcome himself? Who is the saint that sat around crying, complaining and being ungrateful for his life? Who is the person I want to be?
The master of lies wants to rob our time, distract us of what matters, and encourage us to complain. Here is what I want to ask myself when I complain:
What am I actually doing about what I am complaining about? How much effort have I put into the area of grumbling? Am I even doing what I am capable of doing about this given complaint? We tend to complain about the same things over and over. Remember, whether it’s ___, that is the area of our life that really needs the Lords refinement, and the crushing of our own pride. I first need to assess what I have actually done in those areas of complaint! Did I actually take time to ____ and put the hard work needed to succeed in my areas of complaint?
Am I being childish or childlike in my complaints? The adult temper tantrums are bad enough. The latter would be running to our good, safe heavenly Father’s arms, where we can admit our smallness, weakness, and inabilities. Our need for obedience to His will, not ours. Asking him to make us childlike in our complaints, to turn them into a prayer that only His mighty hand can heal, and fully trusting that it is possible.
Call a sister. After being a childlike daughter to our King, we need our community. We need to go to others. Call or text a prayer warrior who can call out the truth in my complaint on a human level and join me in prayer to overcome it. We have to get it out and verbally admit what is going on inside our heads to a trusted friend in order to help crush it. Isolation is the worst.
Count Blessings. Snap out of it, sister! Look at what we have been given, look at all he has done! The newest complaint is nothing new!
My no complaining pep talk to myself is to stop, stop, stop. Let’s look at what we have. Let’s look at what we can do about our situation. Let’s admit our faults. Let’s pray. Let’s heart check the goal of heaven, not earth. But let’s not complain! *I can’t wait to call myself out tomorrow.
In Joy,
Alex