“Do all things without complaining and disputing.”
Philippians 2:14 NKJV
I have a career in one of the toughest fields – IT. Most people would think it is the technology that makes my job difficult but au contraire! I find computers and networks simple to troubleshoot and work with. Most of the time. Technology isn’t an issue for me but the thing that makes my job unnecessarily stressful are the people who use the technology.
Most people that I assist consider themselves technologically illiterate and dislike computers to begin with. So naturally when something goes wrong; they get agitated. The nature of IT forces me to work on issues on a first-come-first-serve basis unless the issue is an emergency. For example, an offline server or network outage for an entire company is considered an emergency but an individual’s iTunes not working is not; though they might think it is. Because I have to prioritize some issues over others, most people who contact me for help have to wait until I am available to help them, and the wait for the customer is extended if I am slammed. By time I get connected with the individual having the issue, odds are they are already frustrated and will likely vent!
IT isn’t for the faint of heart nor is it for those who do not have much patience working with people. Every once and a while, a huffy customer will rub my coworkers the wrong way which in turn sparks complaining within the office about said customer. “You would not believe what Linda just did! She called me incompetent because it took me an hour to fix an issue that SHE caused. Then she went above me and reported me to my manager because I couldn’t get it working fast enough for her!” “Mike just yelled at me because his email got hacked even though Mike got himself hacked because he clicked on a phishing link!”
To be honest, I sometimes find myself joining in and at times past I have been guilty of starting the complain-fest. It is only human nature to make rude people the topic of conversation. When you are rude or ugly to someone, it is almost guaranteed that your ears will be burning later on! Again, this tendency is inherent in all of us; however, should this be so when Jesus taught us to pray for those who mistreat us? (Luke 6:28).
I love the Lord with all my heart and I strive to serve Him with my very best effort but complaining can and has tripped me up many times in my life. Complaining seems like such a harmless thing compared to other sins committed with the tongue such as swearing, gossiping or telling lies but the truth is complaining is just as sinful and deadly. In my experience, complaining has killed a friendship or two. High opinions that people once held about me quickly disappeared because of a single statement laced with passive aggressiveness.
I am never ugly to people when I feel dissatisfaction but the honest truth is my very dissatisfaction is an ugly trait in and of itself. When I think about complaining, I immediately think about the Israelites after they were liberated from Egypt. when Moses and the Israelites left Egypt, they were on a one-way trip to the Promised Land with a brief stop at Sinai in between; however, one thing delayed their arrival to their final destination by forty years. The reason the Israelites had to wander in the wilderness for forty years wasn’t because they worshiped the golden calf nor was it because they mingled with the Moabites; the reason they had to wander was because they kept complaining about their circumstances. God provided for them every step of the way and they simply could not be grateful. Many of them even thought returning to slavery in Egypt would be better than having God provide for them! It’s such an asinine thought but God took it personally!
Complaining is displeasing to the Lord but complaining is more than just words that we speak; it is rooted in a seed of discontent that is planted in our hearts. Jesus taught that the words we speak are a reflection of what is hidden in our hearts.
“For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.”
Matthew 12:34-35 NKJV
Our speech will always reflect what is hidden in our hearts and the tongue will always be a mirror image of our character. James had some choice words to say about the tongue,
“For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and creature of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind. But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so.”
James 3:7-10 NKJV
Because our speech is a reflection of our hearts, we could take James’ statement and say, “the heart is an unruly evil full of deadly poison” and it would align with what Jeremiah wrote about the deceitfulness and wickedness of the heart (Jeremiah 17:9-10).
The thumbnail photo of this article depicts a man with tape over his mouth. Tape may prevent the man from saying something he might regret later on but the tape can never fix what is already in his heart. In the same sense, keeping our mouths shut in the heat of the moment is a great way to prevent a situation from escalating but the seeds of discontent are still firmly rooted deep within. If we struggle with complaining, gossip, or making snide remarks, our prayer shouldn’t be, “Lord, help me bite my tongue” but our prayer should be, “Lord, change my heart!” A muzzle is like putting a band aid on the wrong wound. Go straight to the source – the heart. That is my prayer. “Lord, change my heart and help me to do everything without complaining.”
Joshua Hawk 