When I first started out in ministry, I lived in Yorkshire for a few years. One of the things I loved about the people there were the quirky terms and phrases they’d often use. I remember talking to one older man who’d been through a life of real hardship. He had every reason to complain about what he’d been through – but he was made of different stuff. In his strong Yorkshire accent, he dismissed any notions of negativism. ‘Mustn’t grumble!‘ was his favourite little phrase. I liked him. There was something profoundly dignified about that man which garnered my respect. He simply refused to complain.
One dictionary defines grumbling as ‘murmuring or muttering in discontent‘. It’s something which is prevalent today. Take a look at your Facebook timeline and you’ll soon find it. Every office, school, university and family has it’s grumblers. Churches aren’t exempt from them either.
However as followers of Christ, the Bible very strongly encourages us not to engage in it. For example, Philippianes 2:14 says ‘Do all things without grumbling‘. James 5:9 says ‘Do not grumble against one another‘. 1 Peter 4:9 says ‘Show hospitality to one another without grumbling‘.
In the Old Testament, after Moses had led God’s people to deliverance from the oppression of Egypt, some people began to ‘grumble’ against Moses (Numbers 14:2). Later in the story, God spoke to his people, telling them that the grumbling was a ‘wicked‘ act which reflected ungrateful hearts (Numbers 14:27). In other words, God took an extremely dim view of grumbling.
So here are 30 short reasons why grumbling is no good for you:
1) It feeds your cynicism.
2) It disempowers you.
3) It enslaves you to temporary opinions.
4) It roots itself in the fickleness of anger.
5) It creates stress.
6) It clouds good judgment.
7) It panders to ill-discipline.
8) It contaminates your words.
9) It’s bad for your mind.
10) It’s gossip’s best friend.
11) It undermines your credibility.
12) It develops into a bad habit.
13) It becomes a self fulfilling prophecy.
14) It’s addictive.
15) It feeds negative thinking.
16) It hinders your faith.
17) It’s unhealthy.
18) It’s not truly honest.
19) It harms your relationships.
20) It drives positive influencers out of your life.
21) It yields to unbelief.
22) It’s unpleasing to God.
23) It stunts your progress.
24) It gives you a reputation as a complainer.
25) It’s unwise.
26) It’s a distraction.
27) It kills your joy.
28) It extinguishes your hope.
29) It steals your identity.
30) It makes you more miserable.
Best not to grumble then!
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