Exodus 16:6-8 (HCSB)
6 So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites: “This evening you will know that it was the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt;
7 in the morning you will see the Lord’s glory because He has heard your complaints about Him. For who are we that you complain about us?”
8 Moses continued, “The Lord will give you meat to eat this evening and abundant bread in the morning, for He has heard the complaints that you are raising against Him. Who are we? Your complaints are not against us but against the Lord.”
The Israelites were never happy. There was always something to gripe about, something that wasn’t right.
Things aren’t much different in the 21st Century. The weather is too hot or too cold, too wet or too dry. Our bodies are too big or too small, too short or too tall. Our cars are too big or too small – as are our houses. Things that pleased us yesterday aren’t satisfying today. There are far too few of us who can say with the Apostle Paul, “I have learned to be satisfied in whatever situation I find myself.” (Philippians 4:11 & 12)
In an attempt to make us consider our complaints, Scripture tells us,
Colossians 3:23 (HCSB)
23 Whatever you do, do it enthusiastically, as something done for the Lord and not for men…
Apparently God knew that much of the time our hearts are not in our tasks. We are also admonished to “do all things without complaining.”
We cut ourselves a lot of slack. “I’m only human.” “If you had to live with my man or my children or my mother or my job…” “It’s enough to make a saint mad…”
But have we considered what Moses told the Israelites?
Your complaints are not against us but against the Lord.
I once heard a speaker say that all anger is ultimately at God. Now, at first, I rebelled at that thought. I didn’t think I agreed at all, but I got to meditating on the thought. Maybe my initial anger isn’t at God, but if I hold onto that anger, isn’t it ultimately at God? When I stop feeling the initial feeling and start feeling sorry for myself and nursing a grudge?
If I live in anxiety because my house is too small – or my salary – aren’t I ultimately complaining about what God has provided since He has promised to supply all my needs? (I’m not saying it is wrong to express a desire to God; but that it is wrong to complain about what He has given you – to allow it to paralyze your joy in life.)
If I say that I hate the fact that I have so much trouble keeping weight off my body, am I complaining about the body type with which the Lord has “blessed” me? Oops.
Romans 8:28 (HCSB)
28 We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God: those who are called according to His purpose.
Do you love God? Have you been called (accepted Christ) so that you can serve His purposes? Then we need to stop complaining and start seeking. Seeking to fulfill the will of God in our lives as He reveals it on a daily basis. Turn those complaints into blessings.
You don’t have to be married for the following Scripture to instruct you in being a woman.
1 Peter 3:1-6 (HCSB)
1 Wives, in the same way, submit yourselves to your own husbands so that, even if some disobey the [Christian] message, they may be won over without a message by the way their wives live,
2 when they observe your pure, reverent lives.
3 Your beauty should not consist of outward things [like] elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold ornaments or fine clothes;
4 instead, [it should consist of] the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very valuable in God’s eyes.
5 For in the past, the holy women who hoped in God also beautified themselves in this way, submitting to their own husbands,
6 just as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord. You have become her children when you do good and aren’t frightened by anything alarming.
When we submit to God, everything else falls into place. If you are married, then submitting to your husband will come under this principle. If you are not married, then your submission to God will manifest itself in a gentle and quiet spirit. Not a weak and helpless spirit, but a meek spirit – that is, a teachable spirit that is focused in its direction (like a beautiful stallion).
Read the last of verse six: when you do good and aren’t frightened by anything alarming.
Good? Seeing the needs of others without being told and responding in mercy. That is a fruit of the Spirit.
“…and aren’t frightened by anything alarming.” Surprises? Disasters? We welcome them because they help to prove Whose daughters we are. Like Sarah (Princess), we are courageous. Courage isn’t the absence of fear; it is the presence of God enabling you to proceed in spite of the fear.
When we stay close to God, our complaints turn into challenges; our fears turn into opportunities to show the glory of God. Did He say it would be easy? No.
He used Sarah as an example. I can’t imagine anything more frightening or surprising than being 90 years old and pregnant. But do you remember that she was such a beautiful woman that Pharaoh wanted her at 90 years old. Wow! Was she beautiful on the outside? We don’t know for sure, but we know that she was beautiful on the inside. Not perfect, but beautiful with a gentle and quiet spirit.
So remember when you go to open that mouth in complaint, that the One you are really complaining against is God. It will have a tendency to drive you to your knees. And when you rise, you will do so with a different attitude and courage in your heart rather than fear or dissatisfaction. He doesn’t always change our circumstances, but He gives us the grace to live above them.
**Lord Jesus, I long to be a woman with a gentle and quiet spirit. Forgive me for losing my focus. Help me to keep my eyes on You. Please, give me courage and a thankful heart. In Your Name, Amen.
