The Overwhelming Need for Christians to Understand the Importance of Not Complaining! Part 1.

22 Apr 2026 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Philippians 2:14.        Do all things without murmurings (grumbling) and disputings:

Aye friends, it’s a sunny and fairly warm Wednesday morning, the day we supposedly catch our second wind, but I don’t know anything about catching no second wind nuh, (smile) all I can say is that the ole fella is not a happy camper. I don’t know if the Lord took umbrage, was displeased or whatever, when I said yesterday that I would be glad to see the absence of pain from our lives because it’s been my constant companion over the last several years.

But whether that’s true or not, yesterday afternoon after writing the Bit, I went upstairs to the kitchen to fix something to eat. And, lo, and behold, during the preparation, I turned away from the kitchen counter to do something, I don’t even remember what it was, but all I know is that a terrible pain shot through my right knee. It seems like instead of turning my whole body, I simply turned my knee and twisted it. And to make matters even worse, later in the evening, I bent down to unplug an electronic device and unexpectedly heard the bone in my knee crack, with another shot of pain running through my ole body.

Obviously I doctored it with some of whatever the Duchess had, and although I can walk a bit, getting up and sitting down are not easy, but trying to lie down is the worst; I have to lift my leg with my hand and put it in the bed. Turning around in the bed is not particularly pain free either. And although the Duchess advised me not to come down to the basement to write the Bit, how could I not do what I’m called to do once I’m alive and functioning somewhat eh?

But you should have seen me coming down the basement stairs just now with a bottle of water in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other, trying to put one foot in front of the other in a way that would ease the pain, while trying to hold on to the handrail for balance. It was certainly a ‘jokified’ scene, but with the help of God, I made it down without any further negative incidents. Give God praise, for He’s indeed a good God! Now, that’s my story, and I’m sticking to it. (smile)

Anyway, as they say, who knows why bad things happen to good people, (smile) but we’ll take this unfortunate incident to consider what the Bible says about complaining. And we’ll begin with Bruh Paul’s direct admonishment about complaining in his missive to the Philippians. He says: ‘Do all things without murmurings (grumbling) and disputings: That ye may be blameless and harmless (innocent), the sons (children) of God, without rebuke (fault), in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation (generation), among whom ye shine as lights in the world.’ (Phil. 2:14-15)

Meanwhile James tells us: ‘Grudge not (don’t grumble) one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned (judged): behold, the judge standeth before the door. Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering, affliction, and of patience. Behold we count them happy (blessed) which endure. Ye have heard of the patience (perseverance) of Job, and have seen the end of (the intended end by) the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful (compassionate), and of tender mercy.’ (James 5:9-11)

And it could not get any clearer than that my brethren. However, from the very beginning the Israelites complained about lack of food and water in the wilderness, and Moses warned them about complaining. ‘And Moses said, This shall be when the Lord shall give you in the evening flesh to eat, and in the morning bread to the full; for that the Lord heareth your murmurings which ye murmur (grumble) against him; and what are we? Your murmurings are not against us, but against the Lord.’ (Ex. 16:8)

Yes friends, when we murmur or grumble, it’s against the Lord we’re really murmuring because He’s the one who’s set the path for our lives. And that time, the Lord heard the Israelites pleas and sent them quail and manna, but that did not stop them from complaining, as Bruh Paul points out two occasions in his first letter to the Corinthians.

‘Neither let us tempt (test) Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents. Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer. Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples (examples): and they are written for our admonition (instruction), upon whom the ends of the world (ages) are come. Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.’ (1 Cor. 10:9-12)

What wise advice my people; only wish the Israelites had taken it. And that first example Bruh Paul mentions comes from the Israelites complaining even after they had defeated the Canaanites with the Lord’s help. The Bible tells us: ‘And they journeyed from Mount Hor by the way of the Red Sea, to compass the land of Edom: and the soul of the people was much discouraged (impatient) because of the way. And the people spake against God, and against Moses,

Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, neither is there any water, and our soul loatheth (detests) this light bread (manna). And the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died. Therefore the people of Israel came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord, and against thee; pray unto the Lord, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people.’ (Num. 21:4-7)

Oh my people, please let that be an example to us, with all the grumbling and complaining that’s so prevalent in our current society. Now there’s more for us to talk about on the subject of complaining, but it will make the Bit too long and unwieldy, so we’ll leave that for tomorrow, if God spares life obviously.  Therefore, let’s go home declaring our Wednesday Wail, letting all and sundry know of our wonderful position in Christ Jesus.

As one strong and sincere voice: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’ 

And for those who endure with Christ right to the very end, an even more exciting and glorious future is earmarked for them. So let’s be wise and endure to the end nuh, so that we can enjoy it together! Much LOVE!

…complaining is not a Christian attitude or attribute…but comes from the devil himself…

Hear our podcast at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/randy-obrien

Today’s Scrip-Bit   28 June 2023 Philippians 2:14.

28 Jun 2023 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Philippians 2:14.        Do all things without murmurings (grumbling) and disputings:

Oh boy, are these days ever moving along swiftly. Can you believe it’s already Wednesday, not to mention the last few days of June. And to make matters even worse, today there’s a smoke alert in our area from the wildfires up north that apparently are still spewing out their pollution. And the real summer weather hasn’t even truly arrived. Yes, we have gotten a few hot days along the way, but not consistently, the air conditioners have hardly been on. (smile) It’s been more like springtime weather. 

Let’s hope that July brings some consistently warm weather, so that we can complain that it’s ever so hot. Yuh know how we just LOVE to complain, especially when we get what we ask for and discover it’s not what we really want. And on that note, I think we are being guided to look at complaining in a more serious and biblical sense, because the Bible tells us in several scriptures about the negative consequences of complaining. And there seems to be so much relevant stuff on complaining that this might just have to run for two days. (smile) 

Now, I guess the best place to begin is right at the beginning, where complaining first reared its ugly head with serious consequences. And that’s when the Israelites having seen all the miracles that the Lord had done for them on the way out of Egypt, once in the wilderness on the way to the Promised Land began murmuring and grumbling and about their situation. They complained about the lack of water, the lack of proper food, the lack of meat, etc. etc.  Things got bad and the Lord threatened: ‘I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation and mightier than they.’ (Num. 14:12) 

Yes friends, the Lord was so tired with the ugly griping and complaining after all the wonderful things He’d done for them, that He was willing to destroy them and make a greater second nation for Moses. But Moses interceded on their behalf, pointing out how it would look if He destroyed them, when He was supposed to be their God and looking after them. And the Egyptians would have a field day spreading all kinds of nasty rumours. So the Lord listened to Moses’ wise words and relented, and instead of destroying Israel, He pardoned them. (Num. 14:1-20) 

But they kept on complaining. And finally, the Lord’s patience wore thin. ‘And the Lord spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, How long shall I bear with this evil congregation, which murmur (grumble) against me? I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they murmur against me. Say unto them, As truly as I live, saith the Lord, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you. Your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole (entire) number, from twenty years old and upward, which have murmured against me. 

Doubtless ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware (solemnly promised) to make you dwell therein, save Caleb of Jephunneh, and Joshua of Nun. But your little ones which ye said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know (be acquainted with) the land which ye have despised. But as for you, your carcasses, they shall fall (die) in this wilderness. And your children shall wander in the wilderness (be shepherds) forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcasses be wasted in the wilderness. 

After the number of days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities (guilt), even forty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise (rejection or opposition). I the Lord have said, I will surely do it unto all this evil congregation, that are gathered together against me: in this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die. And the men, which Moses sent to search (spy out) the land, who returned and made all the congregation to murmur against him, by bringing up a slander (bad report) upon the land. Even those men that did bring up the evil report upon the Lord, died by the plague before the Lord.’ (Num. 14:26-37) 

Oh my people, yuh see what the evil of complaining accomplished. And how what you wish for can be used against you, for in verse 2, they had complained: ‘Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God that we had died in this wilderness.’ And they eventually got their wish after refusing to go into the Promised Land because of the negative report of ten of the twelve spies who went in and checked it out. That was a terrible slap in the face to God, because ‘Grumbling complaints directly or indirectly declare that God is not sufficiently good, faithful, loving, wise, powerful, or competent.’ 

So, none of them who came out of Egypt, except Caleb and Joshua, entered the Promised Land, but died in the wilderness. That’s because they were the only two spies who had positive reports on the land. Now you might say that was in the Old Testament and it doesn’t apply today. But you’ll be oh so wrong, for there’s this prominent scripture from Bruh Paul to the Philippians that refutes your contention. It quite clearly says: ‘Do all things without murmurings (grumbling) and disputings: That ye may be blameless and harmless (innocent), the sons (children) of God, without rebuke (fault), in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation (generation), among whom ye shine as the lights of the world.’ (Phil. 2:14-15) 

Yes, my fellow believers, we are warned not to grumble and complain as we go through this tough life, but to be strong and steadfast, blameless, innocent and shining as the lights of the world that Jesus desires of us. And as we saw above, when we grumble and complain against God, it means we don’t consider Him good or strong enough to handle our problems. And believe me, if God could destroy His chosen people, the Israelites for constant complaining and disobedience, why wouldn’t He do likewise to us? No reason whatsoever! 

And I know God claims to be patient and longsuffering, but what with all the sin and disobedience that’s running rampant in our world, I’m sure His patience is growing thin with us, just like it was with the Israelites way back then. And yuh see the lethal punishment that He can mete out. So please, as they say, a word to the wise is sufficient. Let’s be wise then and cut down on our complaining. That’s enough for today. More tomorrow, if God spares life. Let’s go home now declaring (awright!!!) our Wednesday Wail, letting the whole world know of our wonderful position in Christ Jesus. 

Altogether now: ‘Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: I’m so glad to be alive on this Wednesday! Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday: Thank God the breath of life is still flowing through me on this Wednesday! I am halfway home. My hands are fixed securely on the plough, and I’m not turning back. I’m not looking back at the past, not focusing on what has gone before. But my eyes are fixed straight ahead; straight ahead to a glorious future with Jesus. Glory Hallelujah!’ 

And let’s remember, that if we endure with Jesus right down to the very end, that glorious future will be even more glorious than we can ask or imagine! Much LOVE!

…when believers complain incessantly…it upsets God…gives Him and inferiority complex… 

 Hear our podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/3aVfqIC1CqwGybISs9dZ