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"Stop Pouting!"
"In the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The Israelites said to them, 'If only we had died by the Lord's hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death'" (Exodus 16:2,3). "They despised the pleasant land; they did not believe His promise. They grumbled in their tents and did not obey the LORD" (Psalm 106:24,25).
We speak in various churches and for the last several weeks have been assisting a church going through pastoral transition. An older couple sang a special song to the congregation last Sunday evening. The husband plays the guitar and they both sing along. Their style is Southern Gospel and they sing with such enthusiasm and earnestness. They shared some locally written songs Brooksyne and I had never heard before. One especially caught my attention due to a line with a somewhat contrived rhyme, but with a real good message I believe we all need to consider.
"Some people have lost their shout,
All they do is sit around and pout.
Get under the spout,
Where the glory comes out!"
I don't know about you but I've known people who have lost the joy of the Lord and I've even known some who are prone to sitting around and pouting! One of the ongoing challenges in our Christian walk is keeping our focus and perspective. There's so much that distracts us and gets us off task. The daily texts are illustrative of this.
The people of God had witnessed some of the most outstanding displays of God's miraculous power in the entire Bible. They saw God's supernatural work in the ten plagues sent upon Egypt and the incredible crossing of the Red Sea. In the previous chapter they had grumbled about the lack of water and God miraculously provided for this need. Now they're hungry.
Instead of trusting in God and praying for their leadership during this legitimate crisis, they grumbled. I believe the attitude we display when dealing with dissatisfactions is one of the great tests of our Christian character and spiritual maturity.
William Law, who lived in the early 1700's, observed "Whenever you find yourself disposed to uneasiness or murmuring at anything that is the effect of God's providence, look upon yourself as denying either the wisdom or goodness of God."
Today are you living with a healthy outlook, confident of God's love and providential care, even during a season of "difficulty"? Or are you focusing on the difficulty? That's what leads to grumbling and pouting.
Grumbling is our reaction to a perceived unfairness. "I deserve more than this" or "I deserve better than this", we may say or certainly think. But there's a wonderful theological truth expressed early in the Bible by Abraham that we do well to hide deep in our souls. "Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?" (Genesis 18:25).
The answer to that question is always "Yes." In so many ways life has ongoing forks in the road. We can go down the road of grumbling or we can take the road of gratitude. The choice is ours!
Be encouraged today,
Stephen C. Weber
Brooksyne's prayer – Jesus, it is impossible for me to give sincere thanks to You unless I have a grateful heart. Open my eyes to see and verbalize the little blessings that come especially when I'm walking through clouds of difficulty. My daily blessings, by far, out number my troubles. Good health, comfortable shelter, a loving family, steady work, caring friendships and many other blessings seem all too common so I often take them for granted. At times I even feel entitled to these blessings. It is when I'm deprived of a particular blessing that I choose to either grumble or suddenly recognize a blessing that I've overlooked. Lord, I thank You for Your daily provisions. Help me not to wait until trouble erupts before I look to You. Instead help me to be grateful for Your goodness toward me for past blessings and to remain confident that You will be just as faithful in providing for my future needs. And remind me to never take personal credit but realize that all good things are from You. In Your name, Jesus, I thank You today! Amen.
Personal Note from Brooksyne – Last week I led a hymn sing at a local Assisted Living Facility. The theme was "Thanksgiving" as we were considering the coming holiday. I challenged the group to begin to write down their blessings each day up to Thanksgiving so they would be more aware of their blessings. As I gave them the challenge the Lord spoke directly to my heart, "What about you? Why don't You do the same as You've asked them to do?" Well, I've been doing that and I've already come to realize that the health struggles our family was facing (again) would have completely clouded out the multiple blessings God is sending our way had I not begun to count my blessings. Perhaps you, too, would find this to be a helpful exercise in your life.
"Give thanks with a grateful heart" is a great song we have sung for many years which came to mind as I prepared this message.
Update on Mom – She is still in the hospital but due to her medical condition we have been advised to make arrangements for a transfer to a rehab/nursing situation following her discharge. We're looking to God for a rehab that is suitable for her needs.
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Wednesday, November 16, 2005
"Stop Pouting!"
"In the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The Israelites said to them, 'If only we had died by the Lord's hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death'" (Exodus 16:2,3). "They despised the pleasant land; they did not believe His promise. They grumbled in their tents and did not obey the LORD" (Psalm 106:24,25).
We speak in various churches and for the last several weeks have been assisting a church going through pastoral transition. An older couple sang a special song to the congregation last Sunday evening. The husband plays the guitar and they both sing along. Their style is Southern Gospel and they sing with such enthusiasm and earnestness. They shared some locally written songs Brooksyne and I had never heard before. One especially caught my attention due to a line with a somewhat contrived rhyme, but with a real good message I believe we all need to consider.
"Some people have lost their shout,
All they do is sit around and pout.
Get under the spout,
Where the glory comes out!"
I don't know about you but I've known people who have lost the joy of the Lord and I've even known some who are prone to sitting around and pouting! One of the ongoing challenges in our Christian walk is keeping our focus and perspective. There's so much that distracts us and gets us off task. The daily texts are illustrative of this.
The people of God had witnessed some of the most outstanding displays of God's miraculous power in the entire Bible. They saw God's supernatural work in the ten plagues sent upon Egypt and the incredible crossing of the Red Sea. In the previous chapter they had grumbled about the lack of water and God miraculously provided for this need. Now they're hungry.
Instead of trusting in God and praying for their leadership during this legitimate crisis, they grumbled. I believe the attitude we display when dealing with dissatisfactions is one of the great tests of our Christian character and spiritual maturity.
William Law, who lived in the early 1700's, observed "Whenever you find yourself disposed to uneasiness or murmuring at anything that is the effect of God's providence, look upon yourself as denying either the wisdom or goodness of God."
Today are you living with a healthy outlook, confident of God's love and providential care, even during a season of "difficulty"? Or are you focusing on the difficulty? That's what leads to grumbling and pouting.
Grumbling is our reaction to a perceived unfairness. "I deserve more than this" or "I deserve better than this", we may say or certainly think. But there's a wonderful theological truth expressed early in the Bible by Abraham that we do well to hide deep in our souls. "Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?" (Genesis 18:25).
The answer to that question is always "Yes." In so many ways life has ongoing forks in the road. We can go down the road of grumbling or we can take the road of gratitude. The choice is ours!
Be encouraged today,
Stephen C. Weber
Brooksyne's prayer – Jesus, it is impossible for me to give sincere thanks to You unless I have a grateful heart. Open my eyes to see and verbalize the little blessings that come especially when I'm walking through clouds of difficulty. My daily blessings, by far, out number my troubles. Good health, comfortable shelter, a loving family, steady work, caring friendships and many other blessings seem all too common so I often take them for granted. At times I even feel entitled to these blessings. It is when I'm deprived of a particular blessing that I choose to either grumble or suddenly recognize a blessing that I've overlooked. Lord, I thank You for Your daily provisions. Help me not to wait until trouble erupts before I look to You. Instead help me to be grateful for Your goodness toward me for past blessings and to remain confident that You will be just as faithful in providing for my future needs. And remind me to never take personal credit but realize that all good things are from You. In Your name, Jesus, I thank You today! Amen.
Personal Note from Brooksyne – Last week I led a hymn sing at a local Assisted Living Facility. The theme was "Thanksgiving" as we were considering the coming holiday. I challenged the group to begin to write down their blessings each day up to Thanksgiving so they would be more aware of their blessings. As I gave them the challenge the Lord spoke directly to my heart, "What about you? Why don't You do the same as You've asked them to do?" Well, I've been doing that and I've already come to realize that the health struggles our family was facing (again) would have completely clouded out the multiple blessings God is sending our way had I not begun to count my blessings. Perhaps you, too, would find this to be a helpful exercise in your life.
"Give thanks with a grateful heart" is a great song we have sung for many years which came to mind as I prepared this message.
Update on Mom – She is still in the hospital but due to her medical condition we have been advised to make arrangements for a transfer to a rehab/nursing situation following her discharge. We're looking to God for a rehab that is suitable for her needs.
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Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission; and the King James Version.
Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission; and the King James Version.
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