The word "sin" conjures up lots of images in my mind: being cruel to people, murdering, stealing - in short, being really bad. Or maybe the "7 deadly sins" (lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy, pride).
One sin I rarely think about - but which makes me feel uncomfortable - is COMPLAINING... Some translations of the Bible call it "murmuring." (which makes me think of muttering under your breath.) But this sin was apparently serious: it kept God's people wandering in the desert for 40 years.
I came across the sin of complaining recently in the New Testament, in one of the letters written to the young church in Corinth. In it Paul told Christians not to test God or grumble...
GRUMBLE? But... I grumble every day ... or most days:
Why me....?
Why don't I have....?
Why do I have to ....?
I really hate to....
Is THAT really so bad?!
Why is grumbling a sin? Is it because we have been given so much - and when we grumble we tend to forget that - and look only at what we think we are lacking?
I know that - as a parent - I used to hate it when my kids complained that someone else had more - or when they weren't thankful for what they were given. They had so much, but didn't seem to see it.
On a day-to-day level, grumbling and complaining can be very debilitating for everyone within earshot.
I remember a co-worker who complained a lot. She wasn't a BAD person, but it was hard to be with her. She was always angry about administration, family, students or life in general.
I avoid her, one co-worker told me, because she always brings me down.
So grumbling poisons the air. And we all want (we all need) hope... and optimism.
The antidote for grumbling seems to be thankfulness....
When I feel bad, my husband reminds me: You have a lot to be thankful for! And he goes on to list some of the good things in my life that I forget when I'm feeling blue...
There is a lot to be said for the old notion of COUNTING YOUR BLESSINGS!
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