Gtcotr/ss073116
Psalms 106:25 But they complained in their tents, And
did not heed the voice of the LORD.
Reference: Deuteronomy 1:27 and you complained in your tents, and said,
’Because the LORD hates us, He has brought us out of the land of Egypt to
deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us.
The
carnal spirit of man is a dark force that draws people away from God. From
cults to crusades, demons often get involved only after the evil plans of man
are hatched. Some people are bent towards evil while others only dabble in it
for their own personal gain. Far too often our own complaints, as well as the
complaints of others, move us towards the darkness and away from God. I don’t
know why it is the way it is but the truth is darkness draws, facilitates and
hides evil while light scatters the sin.
The
pattern of drawing away from God and Godliness follows the same course:
·
Subtle
conversations – even with oneself in their mind … creating and feeding
dissatisfactions – Basic Complaint …
·
Followed
by Separation from the Word, Will
& Way of God
·
Then
comes the Isolation from all that is
life giving
·
Finally
the darkness exercises Control over
the soul
Those
souls drawn into the darkness find themselves in need of deliverance for their
spirit, renewal for their minds, and restoration for the relationships which cannot
flourish in the darkness.
It
doesn’t have to be the devil that separates people from God and His work and
will. Rather it is most often the lust driven needs and carnal appetites of men
and women hungry to satisfy the cravings of their flesh. We see this played out
even in the current political process of our national elections.
Jude 1:16 These are grumblers, complainers, walking
according to their own lusts; and they mouth great swelling words,
flattering people to gain advantage.
Sides
are taken … Each side looking to find common ground to foster even greater
dissatisfaction hoping to separate, isolate and control. Why? … Because of a
singular desire to make some gain for themselves.
The
practice of tearing another person or platform down in order to elevate you is
not the way of the Lord but rather the way of the flesh. It is a work of the
flesh found in the book of Galatians called emulation. The devil does not need
to get involved when men and women will do most of the work for him if he can
just give them something to complain about.
One
of the biggest reasons why the Children of Israel did not get to go into the
Promise Land was because they had developed a very bad and debilitating habit –
they complained about everything. It separated them, isolated them and
ultimately controlled their destiny. They believed God felt about them like
they felt about Him!
Life is not a competition.
Here
is a good rule of thumb: Expect people to talk about you just exactly like you
talk about them and say about you exactly what you say about them and feel
about you exactly like you feel about them.
Nothing
is hidden … not really … just some people have a more socially acceptable way
of covering it.
While
worry can stop you and rob you of joy, confidence and strength, complaining can
stop a whole nation from attempting or achieving their greatest day. The
Children of Israel freely complained to each other about everything … even
about God! Not the best idea … And, by
the way:
Correction is not complaint.
Correction is aimed at fixing a problem while complaint aims only at
voicing the problem
or worse yet, causing a problem. Complaining spirits are sometimes subtle and
sometimes loud and obnoxious. However they present themselves, they aim to
separate, isolate, and control.
Complaint
is when you are talking to the wrong person … or even when you may be talking
to the right person with the wrong attitude.
Complaint saddles others with your aggravations.
Voicing
your concerns, frustrations or complaints to someone who is neither the cause
nor the cure of the complaint is divisive. If separation of friends, families,
the nation, or the Church is what you are going for … complaining is the right
choice. However, if fixing a problem that legitimately exists is your intent
then complaints will only work against that goal. Fussing and complaining never
fixes anything … it only makes things worse.
The
Godly pattern and the command we have been given is to shine a light on the
answer and not on the problem. Anyone can curse the darkness but it only helps
when someone lights a lamp. You might say, “I know what the problem is but I
don’t know the answer. What should I do?”
1.
Pray
2.
Talk to the right person with the right attitude. (Someone who can provide the answer or someone who is
responsible to fix it.)
3.
Stop talking to the wrong people. (Don’t
make things worse by involving others or adding fuel to the fire.)
4.
Be willing to consider that some of the problem might be you and be
ready to accept personal responsibility to work on you first.
5.
Don’t be drawn into the dark by allowing others to saddle you with
their carnal complaints …
Philippians 2 NKJV
14 Do all things without
complaining and disputing,
15 that you may become
blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked
and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world,
16 holding fast the word of life,
so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or
labored in vain.
1
Corinthians 10:10 Do not complain, as
some of them also complained, and were destroyed by the destroyer.
