As I age, and loved ones depart from earth, I think more about things that matter in eternity. Grief loosens our hold on this world, whispering again that we’re not home yet. But the Bible assures us that because Jesus lives, death has been swallowed up in victory.
Today I’m sharing a poem I wrote in 2007 around the time my earthly father stepped into eternity.
What a Wonderful Day!
Oh, what a wonderful day that will be When the face of our Jesus we see. Then like Him we will always be. Oh, what a wonderful day!
Oh, won't you come and share it with me? You can if on Jesus you will believe. Come, let's head to heaven. How happy we'll be! Oh, what a wonderful day!
Sometimes I dream of that blessed day When our Lord comes and catches us away. Yes, even now, let us walk in His Way. Oh, what a wonderful day!
O grave, where's your victory? Death, where's your sting? For Jesus has risen and conquered all things. And those who believe Him forever can sing Praise to His wonderful name.
Take a moment today to thank Jesus for the sure hope we have because He lives.
Bible References:
“Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is” (1 John 3:2 NKJV).
“So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: ‘Death is swallowed up in victory. O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?'” (1 Corinthians 15:54-55 NKJV).
John the Baptist pointed to Jesus as the “Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world.” (John. 1:29) How glad I am that He took that death sentence that was mine because of sin!
If this post encouraged you, please share it with someone who may need a reminder that when we trust Jesus, heaven is our true home.”
I’m thankful to God for all of you. May He always guide you.
During November and December, I will take a break from blog post writing to work on my annual booklet, Journal Treasures, for 2025. This consists of several of the posts from this year’s writing with a front and back cover. I send it to friends and family.
I will be using part of the time during the break on plans for updating and improving my website.
May your holidays be fantastic, and may God use you to bless others as we close out the year.
I pray that the light and love of God through Jesus Christ would sustain you now and forever.
Have you missed God’s voice to you? Be encouraged—He speaks repeatedly in various ways. With mercy and patience, He guides us to grow in faith and trust.
I want to learn to recognize God’s voice better. One way to do that is to listen and obey, that is, practice. This morning, after listening to Bible readings in the Old Testament, New Testament, Proverbs, and Psalms, I wanted to read (listen to) something different as I finished dressing and started laundry. I’m unsure if I asked God what to listen to or not. A thought flitted through my mind that I could listen to God.
Then I said I wanted to listen to something fun. So, I chose a cozy mystery audiobook. Later, when I prayed during my morning walk, I thought, “Shucks! I missed it! I missed an opportunity to hear and recognize God’s voice when He told me to listen to Him. I wonder if I’ll ever learn!”
I continued my walk and heard God remind me that He doesn’t give up on us. He continues to work with us as we learn to listen better. He pointed out that He has new mercies each morning for us—not just one mercy, but mercies—more than one . I remembered that “the Word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time” (Jonah 3:1) when he didn’t listen the first time.
Iguazu Falls
Think about it: Have you ever realized too late that God was speaking—and you missed it? How does God’s patience and mercy encourage you?
Prayer: Thank You, God, for Your continued mercy and patience as I learn to listen to You and recognize Your voice. Amen.
Once again, I will be adding things in the recorded audio sermon that may not show up in the written version. Please consider listening to the audio.
Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 13, the famous chapter on love, that among the many things that is true of divine love is this: “…love keeps no record of wrongs” (v. 5).
If you lament however, and pour out your complaint to the Lord, as David did in Psalm 142 (discussed last week), it may seem that you are doing exactly that. Yet, I am trying to make the case that there is a difference between lamenting, in which you identify the specific nature of your troubles, and in keeping a record of wrongs. The two can look very much alike, but what distinguishes them is your “why.”
If you take offense and allow yourself to become bitter, you view everything in your life through the lens of what was done to hurt you. You become a victim. To everyone who will listen, you will recite in detail what various people did to hurt you. You do this in order to receive sympathy and support for your case against those who injured you. There is a tone of resentment that seeps through these discussions. This is evidence that your heart is unhealed and it is a clear indication that you need both healing in your heart and you need to learn to cancel the debt of the person or people who have hurt you. By the way, this is a bit different than processing your hurt with people who can help you heal. The person who has taken offense is someone who doesn’t plan to heal. They just want to complain.
(Tom here, now, for this paragraph) We should remember that it is possible take offense at God, and even resent him. In such cases, we might complain to him, but our complaint to God has no trust, no hope. In such cases we are merely expressing our dissatisfaction, and we want to show not that we trust God, but rather, that it seems he has failed us. This was the kind of grumbling that the people of Israel did in their journey between Egypt and the Promised Land.
By contrast, the lamenter’s focus is one of trust in God. He or she has a purpose in verbally identifying the specific nature of his or her troubles in order to invite God into them. This process is very similar to asking God to heal your physical body. Usually when you do that you are very familiar with the particular ailment that you want God to heal. You mention it by name. When you are asking Him for healing, it is likely you will say something like, “Lord, I would like you to heal my back…” Or, “Please heal my skin cancer…”
When you do that, you are not offended by the problem. You certainly don’t like the thing that afflicts you, but you want to identify it in order to bring it to the Lord for healing. That’s what we are doing when we are lamenting and pouring out our complaint to the Lord. This is why doing so is not grumbling or murmuring.
What I’m recommending in this series is identifying to God the things that are creating misery, anguish, torment, grief, relational loss, anger, or even a sense of rejection in your life.
I am encouraging you to get specific in your lamenting to God about the particular nature of the pain you are feeling. Perhaps you have experienced a relational injury and you know that eventually, it will be to your benefit to get to a place of forgiving the person who hurt you. That’s good, but you won’t get there by pretending everything is okay. It’s much more authentic and beneficial to you if you talk to God about how you were injured. What was said that you find hurtful? Christians often make the mistake of prioritizing forgiving someone over receiving healing for the pain that sets them up for future resentment. If you attempt to forgive before you lean into your pain and bring it to the Lord, you short circuit the process. In order to be able to authentically cancel someone’s relational debt, you must not minimize what happened. It may be that there are a hundred other people who have experienced worse than what you experienced, but if what happened to you hurt you, it matters. So begin there. Feel your feelings. They are there to serve you. It was God who gave you the capacity to feel. Your feelings are like spiritual nerve endings which inform you of an injury. Pay attention to them. Identify them. Say out loud how someone’s actions make you feel. Did they make you feel shamed? Accused? Condemned? Judged? Insulted? Disrespected? Dishonored? Misunderstood? Rejected? Exploited? Victimized? Abused? Admitting them is an important first step to healing. Admit them and lament them. Grieve them. And, invite God in.
Lamenting is good for your spiritual health. It keeps you from imploding. It helps you avoid fakery. Lamenters understand that you don’t have to “fake it till you make it.” Lamenters are not image managers. They get comfortable letting it all hang out because they know God is a God of big shoulders. He’s not fussy– not annoyed by the lamenter’s anger, frustration, hatred or by the raw language they may use to express their frustration. Why? Because a lamenter is turning toward God in his pain.
Grumbling is not good for your health. Grumbling causes you to focus on your problems. The grumbler is stuck in a rut because He stopped inviting God in. He or she is actually keeping God at arms length. Grumbling is the breeding ground for resentment. The grumbler has an entitlement mindset and his temporary disappointment with God becomes permanent because He views God as someone who was supposed to help Him cope. He views God like an illicit drug– something to make him feel better. In their hearts, grumblers feel that God is a means to an end, and they feel he has failed to do for them what they expect him to do. In other words, the grumbler’s world is oriented around him/her self and not around what delights God. Perhaps it never was.
It’s been occurring to me a lot lately that this way of thinking, that is, the one that is based on orienting my life around myself is a counterfeit version of real Christianity. The real disciple of Jesus is called to a life that is oriented around, centered in and based on Jesus of Nazareth. It’s normal for every person, including every genuine follower of Jesus to want things to go well. It’s normal to work hard at making life work, however we define that. BUT and this is a big “but,” but an actual follower of Jesus has embraced the idea that it is right, good and holy to forsake literally everything to follow Jesus, to surrender every agenda, every longing, every ache, every hope, dream and ambition in favor of living to please the Savior. He or she adopts and begins, over the course of time, to embody the motto, “not my will, but Yours be done.” He or she has come to the realization that he or she must be grounded in the value that God’s Kingdom is his/her first priority (Matthew 6:24).
A lamenter can sound a lot like a grumbler. The thing that makes lamenting different is the reason behind your complaining. The lamenter is turning to God, not away from God and inviting God into his or her hardships. Doing this can lead to some questions, questions like “Why?” This question usually bubbles out of the profound confusion that disables the lamenter. The lamenter’s pain is profound, and his/her confusion is great. He or she simply must ask, “Why?” Next week we’ll lean into this question more fully.
2 thoughts on “GRUMBLING vs LAMENTING #2: INVITE THE LORD INTO YOUR DIFFICULTIES”
triciajots4jesus These “E-pistles” are excellent; this one really hit home with me. It has been easy for me to grumble and complain, and this E-pistle helps me get back on track. Thanks for posting these.
pastorjoejohnson Hi Tom, Well done, very helpful teaching on healthy ways to lament One practice that works for me is alongside of writing 10 gratefuls to Jesus I write 10 not so gratefuls. I am not grateful for……naming feelings, wrongdoing, pain, heartache as a prayer to Jesus. Sometimes a “not so grateful “becomes an onramp for a grateful—e.g. I am not grateful for limits of my aging body. I am grateful for Jesus helping me and providing enough health and healing to keep on doing what I love to do. Grateful—consolation No grateful—desolation Not gratefuls give a language for specific laments Best way is to direct them to Jesus and listen for His response to my gratefuls (interactive gratitude) and not gratefuls—always loving, never upset with me, loves and accepts me.Sometimes validating a not grateful helps me let it go and give to Jesus Blessings of joy and peace Joe> Reply
Grumbling, complaining, and arguing come naturally, but God calls us to humility, gratitude, and patience instead. Let’s trade our complaints for trust and thanksgiving.
“Do everything without grumbling or arguing.” Did you know that’s in the Bible? It’s Philippians 2:14. That’s among the most challenging commands for me to obey. I fall into the temptation so easily, especially when dealing with computer and tech issues!
I hope you don’t struggle in that area, but if you fight this problem as I do, these three practices can help us.
Let’s begin with humility. If we humble ourselves before God, He will lift us up at the right time (1 Peter 5:6). God is in control, not me. Do I have the authority to tell Him what to allow in my life? Of course not! I will trust His choice of what is best for me and avoid complaining about His decisions.
Next, let’s choose gratitude over complaining. Honestly, I admit that I tend to complain. Complaining and grumbling are similar. Grumbling is muttering dissatisfaction in the shadows, while complaining is voicing it openly. Both show discontent with what God has provided. Oh, my! I hadn’t thought of it in that way. I repent.
God commands us in Scripture to be thankful in everything. So now, I choose to replace complaints with thanksgiving. I will trust God with what I can’t control and look for all the blessings God has given me. Let’s focus on things that are good and thank God for them.
Finally, let’s practice patience. Impatience reveals my pride. I think I’m so important or my business is so urgent that I shouldn’t have to wait. So, I stew, stress both body and soul, and accomplish nothing.
When I must wait, let me wait on the Lord and renew my strength (Isaiah 40:31). Or I can look for a way to bless others who are waiting.
Prayer: Dear God, I have habitually failed to live out Philippians 2:14. Please forgive me and empower me as I seek to change.
Let’s Do It: When we catch ourselves beginning to complain, let’s stop and transform the complaint into a prayer of trust.
“Our past is covered; our future rests in Christ.”
“Lord, today I will turn my cares over to You because You care for me (1 Peter 5:7),” I wrote in my journal.
My enemy taunts, “You haven’t done that in the past. What makes you think you’ll do that now?”
Looking back on my life so far, I see that I haven’t done well in that regard. Still, I cannot undo my actions or fix what I’ve neglected. So, what does God want me to do? In a favorite verse, 1 John 1:9, God says that He will forgive and purify us when we confess our sins. I will confess my sins and accept forgiveness.
So, I respond to the discouraging thought about my past failures by saying, “This is a new day. God’s mercies are new every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23). I’ve left my failures of yesterday at the cross of Jesus. I walk into this new day clean, forgiven, and committed to obeying Christ.
I didn’t notice any worries I needed to release that day. However, the veterinarian has now found a serious health problem with one of our beloved cats. This means we might have to let go of the dear pet. That’s a concern I need help with. So how do I release my worry and trust it to God?
I recognize that God is Lord over all and that He has allowed this part of living in a broken world to touch my life. I remember that the Lord is always good and works everything into His purposes. Then I choose to trust Him to do what is best. If I must let the cat go, I will grieve because I love all my pets.
Then I will continue with life, seeking to obey Jesus in everything.
Think about it: We can embrace today as a fresh start. Let’s walk forward forgiven, clean, and free in the grace of Jesus.
Prayer: Jesus, I release all my yesterdays to You. Please let Your grace cover me and guide my steps into this new day.
Today, I discovered a pocket of bitterness in my soul. Some friends chose not to attend what I considered a significant event. I resented their choice. I had let pride slip into my heart. It made me think I had a right to judge their choices.
My resentful attitude kept me from rejoicing with them at other times. It robbed me of the joy of gratitude for good things that happened.
The resentment hid in a secret corner of my mind, where I didn’t see it. It turned into bitterness when I didn’t face it and root it out. Today, God shone a light on it so I could repent.
How thankful I am for His correction! It’s such a relief to find and break free from the bitterness that poisons whatever it touches.
“You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand” (Psalm 16:11 NIV).
Think about it: Could hidden resentments or disappointments rob you of joy? Talk with God about it. God’s grace can set us free from any root of bitterness.
Prayer: Dear Father, thank You for shining Your light into the hidden corners of my heart. Forgive me for holding onto resentment and bitterness. Please show me practical steps to replace bitterness with thankfulness and grace. Amen.
May you be blessed with grace and freedom today, my friend. If this post blessed you, please share it with others.
Our pastor compared prayer to talking with your best friend. So, I considered, “Can I think of God as my best friend? Wouldn’t that be too irreverent? What difference would that make in my prayers?”
Jesus told His disciples that they were more than servants. They were friends (John 15:14). Paul tells us that Jesus has made us friends of God. (See Romans 5:11 NLT) The Bible also tells us that God will never fail or abandon us (Hebrews 13:5). That sounds like a best friend to me.
Concerning being irreverent, it won’t be if I remember that God is so much more! He is God Almighty, all-wise, always and everywhere present, and the Creator of heaven, earth, and everything in them.
How thrilling to remember each day that God is my best friend! This idea impacts me, especially when I think about prayer.
If God truly is my best friend, I won’t just talk at Him—I’ll talk with Him. I won’t unload my troubles and fears and ask Him to fix everything. Instead, I’ll listen and wait for His reply—just as I would with a dear friend whose thoughts matter to me. There’s nothing more wonderful than a conversation with someone who truly understands and cares.
In our conversation, I will ask Him what’s on His mind and what we might do together. I can ask how to serve Him best today and wait for His answer.
At my childhood church, we sang this hymn about being friends with God:
“Jesus is all the world to me, My life, my joy, my all; He is my strength from day to day, Without him I would fall: When I am sad, to him I go, No other one can cheer me so; When I am sad, he makes me glad, He’s my friend.” [Jesus Is All the World to Me by Will L. Thompson (1904), Verse 1 only.]
Do you ever feel like a failure? I struggle with that feeling often. One morning, I felt particularly down on myself. So, I prayed, “Lord, I look at my life, and all I see is failure. It is a failure to love, serve, give, and trust.” I see too much self-seeking and taking when I should be offering.
“I know You forgive me each time I confess my sin to You, and I thank You for forgiveness. But my earthly life is nearing its end, so it seems almost too late to achieve anything worthwhile. I feel ashamed of who I’ve been and wonder if I’ve changed at all.
“A part of me wants to return to my failures and try to fix them. I want to change my sinful attitudes and wrong choices. The sensible part of me knows that can’t happen. After all, 2 Samuel 14:14 is true: ‘All of us must die eventually. Our lives are like water spilled out on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again’ (NLT).”
God spoke to my heart after my prayer. He said, “It is difficult for you to believe that My grace can cover all your failures and mistakes. Yet, it can. My mercy is new each morning, and so it is new today. You’ve written this often in your journal. Remind yourself of this truth now.”
Later, I listened to several old hymns, including “Wonderful Grace of Jesus ” (Harold Lilenas, 1918). The refrain spoke an outstanding heavenly echo that God’s grace is enough to cover ALL my failures (emphasis mine):
Wonderful the matchless grace of Jesus, deeper than the mighty rolling sea, higher than the mountain, sparkling like a fountain, all sufficient grace for even me; Broader than the scope of my transgressions, sing it! Greater far than all my sin and shame. O magnify the precious name of Jesus, praise his name!
Think about it: God’s grace never ends, and He has enough to give us fresh grace daily. What do you need fresh grace for today? You can talk to God about it.
Prayer: Thank you for Your all-sufficient grace, God.
“If only you had paid attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river, your well-being like the waves of the sea” (Isaiah 48:18 NIV).
Yes, if only!
I’ve known many of God’s commands for most of my life. For example, I know I should rejoice when I experience various troubles, cast all my cares on God, and give thanks in all circumstances.
Has my peace been like a river and my well-being like the waves of the sea? Not as much as I wish. I knew the commands, but too often I failed to put them into practice. I didn’t rejoice when I faced troubles, leave my cares with God, or live in gratitude. Instead, I did what many humans do: I became angry, grumpy, and irritated.
But even now, I remember a Chinese proverb that says that the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago, and the second-best time is now. So, the best time to start practicing Christ’s teachings was when I first learned of God’s love. The second-best time is now.
I have a new day to pay more attention to and obey God’s commands.
Think about it: What command of Christ will I live out today?
Prayer: Today, I surrender myself more fully to You, Lord. Let this be a season of learning to hear You more clearly and obey You more fully. Amen.
May you have peace like a river today, my friends. Please share this post with others if you found it helpful or a blessing.
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