Be Wise, Don't Complain & Criticize

It seems to be the way of the world these days to complain and criticize.  Living in North Dakota, the weather is perhaps the number one choice of things to complain about.  If it isn't too cold, it is too hot.  If there isn't too much rain, there's not enough.  Chances are it might be too windy, too.  [On rare occasions, like today, we have what we call "Goldilocks Days" when everything is just right!]

When I worked as a bank teller, the most common topic of conversation with my customers was the weather.  It's actually quite comical, because no matter how much you complain, it is impossible to alter the weather.  As is often said these days, "It is what it is!"

Being critical falls closely behind complaining when it comes to negative mindsets.  It's always easier to criticize how something is being done (or NOT being done) than it is to constructively come up with a positive alternative. 

So what does the Bible have to say about complaining and being critical?  The first thought coming to mind is looking to the example of the Israelites.  God used Moses to free them from slavery in Egypt through miraculous ways, culminating in the parting of the Red Sea.  In Exodus 15 we find the Israelites singing a song of praise and thanksgiving afterwards, but we don't even finish the chapter before we hit verse 24, which says, "So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, "What are we to drink?"

From complaining about no water, they quickly moved on to complaining about their choices of food in chapter 16.  By the next chapter they were back to complaining about the water.  Further on, after Moses received the Ten Commandments from God on Mt. Sinai, along with a series of laws, we find the story of the golden calf, which was the result of their criticism of Moses in taking too long on the mountain. 

Moving to the book of Numbers, we find the Israelites on the verge of entering the Promised Land.  You would think they would be excited, but instead once again they are complaining.  Numbers 14:2 tells us, "All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole assembly said to them, "If only we had died in Egypt!  Or in this desert!"

The result of their complaining is revealed later on in the chapter. . .forty years they would wander in the wilderness until all those twenty years old or more who had grumbled died in the desert.  Only Caleb and Joshua were spared, as they were the only two optimists in the crowd.

Jumping to the New Testament, we are reminded in Philippians 2:14 to "Do everything without grumbling or arguing".  (NIV)  Other versions use the words complaining, disputing, murmuring, and questioning.

Verse 15 makes it clear why we are to avoid these things:  ". . .so that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world. . ."

With a clear command against complaining and criticizing in the New Testament, and the example of what happens when you do in the Old Testament, I'm thinking it might be a good idea to work on bettering our mindsets.  A post on Facebook today gave a challenge:

What do you think? Would it be possible?  We'll never know unless we try.  And if we try and don't succeed,  I'm guessing the next best thing would be to "try, try again"!