Psalm 142:2 - Complaining

I pour out before him my complaint;
     before him I tell my trouble.

No one likes to hear us complain. We can wear our friends and family out with complaining. But, there is one we can go to who does not tire of our complaints: God. God will listen to us for as long as we talk, God loves us and as a baptized believer, his spirit lives in us and is always ready to listen.

Lord, thank you for always listening to our complaints. Please help us to fully trust you and give our concerns over to you. Amen.

Joel 2:23 - Thanks for the rain

Be glad, people of Zion,
     rejoice in the Lord your God, for he has given you the autumn rains
     because he is faithful. He sends you abundant showers,
     both autumn and spring rains, as before.

It is spring in Texas and we are receiving a huge amount of rain. Some years we are in almost drought conditions and are praying for rain. This year (and last) we have complained about too much rain, but "be glad...rejoice in the Lord your God, for he has given you...rain."

Lord, thank you for the rain you have sent to us. Please help us to appreciate your control of the weather. Amen.

Exodus 32:1 - The short path to sin

When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.”

This passage really troubles me. How could this whole group of people sinned against God in such a monumental way? What was Aaron thinking? Why in the world would he have made an idol? I guess the simple answer is the fact that they are human. Sin is never very far away. When we begin complaining about God, church, preachers, our circumstances, etc... it wears away at our faith until it doesn't take much to make it crumble.

Lord, thank you for your forgiveness for our sins. Please help us to continually build up our faith. Amen.

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Habakkuk 3:17-18 - God is good, all the time

Though the fig tree does not bud
    and there are no grapes on the vines,
though the olive crop fails
    and the fields produce no food,
though there are no sheep in the pen
    and no cattle in the stalls,
yet I will rejoice in the Lord,
    I will be joyful in God my Savior.

This reminds me of a phrase I have heard many times from my sister-in-law, "God is good, all the time." This same sister-in-law taught a class about the song Blessed Be Your Name by Matt Redman. From a post on June 18, 2015, "God is worthy all the time regardless of our current situation. In good times and in bad we must choose to praise and worship God. When the Lord gives and when the Lord takes away we must choose to praise and worship God." Habakkuk is prophesying and complaining to God about permitting the evil in Judah to go unpunished, then using an sinful nation to execute judgement.Yet in the midst of these complaints, Habakkuk remains in awe of the Lord and says he will rejoice and be joyful in God.

Lord, Thank you for allowing us to come to you with our complaints and sorrows. We will honor you and rejoice in your name in all situations. Amen.

Philippians 2 : 14-15

Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, "children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation." Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky

Wow! This is exactly what I needed to hear today. I have been grumbling about how my boss has been treating me. But I need to remember this is a warped and crooked generation. In order to shine among them like stars, I need to not grumble and argue so I can remain blameless and pure. My rights are not the most important thing here. I don't have to go talk to people and tell them what's going on to get sympathy, that would be the grumbling part. And I don't have to argue with my boss about what I don't agree with her about. It's more important that I am pure and blameless.

Lord, I want to shine like a star. I want to be pure and blameless. Lord, help me to endure whatever I need to endure without grumbling or complaining. I love you Lord. Thank you. Amen