"No one spoke to me at church today..."
"No one named me the Associate Assistant to the volunteer Sunday School Director..."
"The Pastor didn't call me when I stumped my toe last week and missed Wednesday Night Service.."
Rich, moving, somewhat ridiculous in it's wording, but nonetheless some of the most popular phrases found in organized Christianity today....ah, the art of complaining....no one has mastered it more than those of us claiming the name Christians.
I have heard so many different ways of complaining that we could have written 4, 177 different volumes of how to do it, I mean seriously this could be bigger than the "Left Behind Series!" Yea, so anyway, why do we do it? By "we" I am specifically calling out to those who are considering themselves to be avid Followers of Christ....why do we complain? We are specifically told in Philippians 2:14 to do "everything without complaining or arguing." Aside from that, we are children of the king, which means that our needs are provided for by Him...not a job, spouse, church, friend, or that dude that is always screaming about free money from the government that has a ridiculous looking jacket on that has question marks all over it! (BTW, what was that guys thinkin?)
In my almost 12 years of ministry, I have heard more complaining than praising...I have heard more complaining than thanking....I have heard more complaining than getting off your old hind parts and making a difference in this incredibly confused and not-so-forgiving world and if I could just be so bold as to say it, I'm a little raw about it...let me tell you why....
I grew up in a little different situation, great parents, good schools, well taken care of, and disciplined (ooo, how we need that discipline). You may say, "doesn't sound so different...." and if the story ended there it may not be, but it doesn't....you see, when we went to a shopping center as a family, we didn't park where many of you parked, we parked in that blue area that will get you a fat ticket if you park there without proper permission, because on board with us was always a very cheerful, courageous, man that was full of more heart that the average, overweight, unhappy, chronic complaining Americans that have berthed this blog....and he only had half of his body fully functioning in the department of motor skills.....this was my brother. Spina Bifida left it's ugly mark on my older brother, curved, humped spine, paralysis from the waist down, and a million and one blank stares from those who could never wrap their minds around something or someone who was different. Don't feel sorry for him, don't you dare! He didn't need the sympathy....he just got up every day thankful for another one and "did work" on life as no one else I have ever known....lived on campus in college and graduated...woke up at 5am to make a 9am class....transferred from the bed to a wheelchair to a showerchair to a wheelchair back to the bed to get dressed and transfer to his wheelchair to get in a motorized chair to start his day....which included a full load of college coursework. He faced more adversity than we have ever thought about and died earlier than he should have, all the while, smiling, loving his family, loving life, and not freakin' complaining about every single bump in the road...so what the he** are you complaining about? Why are we so obsessed with how much we are affected by some petty words or imaginary offenses that we can't function without feeling like we are so oppressed, depressed, and unimpressed in this life? My advice: Put on your big boy underwear (or big girl panties, if indeed you are a female) and let's build a freakin' bridge and get over it....in light of what my brother and so many other people are going through and have gone through, our life is an all expenses paid vacation-Please remove the plank right here!
