Recently, I wrote a blog about Why Grumbling Is Bad For Mental Health. In that blog, I discussed how grumbling was truly offensive to God to the point of deserving death. I even talked about some reasons that made grumbling bad for one's mental health such as causing one to no longer have peace of mind, making people no longer love one another, and making people into workaholics. As I wrote this blog, it dawned on me that I should discuss how one can overcome grumbling in one's life. Grumbling is a natural thing that we are all guilty of. One could say that grumbling is as natural as breathing air. Most of the time we do not even realize that we are doing it. Even though grumbling comes so naturally to us, it is still deeply offensive to the Lord because it shows that we do not truly and fully trust in His sovereignty. So, what is the answer to something that comes so naturally to us? In this blog, I shall discuss biblical ways that will help us overcome grumbling. This does not mean that you will never grumble again if you implement these four things. On the contrary, it is because we deal with indwelling sin that it is inevitable that we will fall into the sin of grumbling from time to time. However, remembering these four points can help you to grumble less. That is my intention in writing this blog. If you keep in mind these four points when you are tempted to grumble, you will remember to refrain because you trust in His sovereignty. The four points I will be addressing in this blog are the following:
1) Prayer
2) Thinking Positively
3) Meditating on His Word
4) Participating In Fellowship
I fully realize that there are more points that I can address that will help you overcome grumbling, but for the sake of this blog, these are the four points that I will choose to focus on. If you can think of any more tips that help you overcome grumbling, please feel free to share them below. I will now elaborate on these four points.
Prayer
When we turn to 1 Peter 5:7, we read the following:
"...casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you"
In this short verse, we see that we are commanded to give God all of our anxieties. Notice how it does not say that your anxiety is sinful. This is an important point to make because some well-meaning Bible teachers have been guilty of condemning all anxiety as being sinful. We need to be careful that we are not doing the same. Anxiety is not always sinful, but we are commanded to go to the Lord with all of our anxiety. Why should we do this? The second half of this verse answers perfectly: "Because he cares for you". Think about this for a second. The Sovereign, omnipotent God of the cosmos cares for you. God controls literally everything that takes place in His creation and yet He still chooses to care for His people. If this does not give us reason to rejoice as we are encouraged to go to Him with all of our fears and anxieties, then I am not sure what will. This same God who breathed an entire complex universe into existence really cares deeply and intimately for His people.
Another passage that I'd like to draw your attention to is Philippians 4:6-7. This text says the following,
"...do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding. will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus"
Here is another text that commands us to bring all of our anxieties to the Lord. We are told to be anxious about nothing because we are bringing everything to Him in prayer. The Sovereign God of the universe already knows us better than we know ourselves because everything we think, say, and do is laid bare before His very eyes. Knowing this fact should make it easy to go to Him because it does not make much sense to attempt to hide anything from Him anyway. One other thing I'd like to point out concerning this text is the fact that it gives us a promise to follow the command. What is this promise? If we actually do bring all of our anxieties to God, the promise is that He will give us perfect peace of mind because He is guarding our hearts and minds. When we fully trust Him and His sovereignty, we will never have anything to worry about because we know deep down that He is always in control. This is why Paul can tell us in verse 4 of chapter 4 of Philippians to rejoice always. This knowledge certainly gives us every reason to rejoice.
Thinking Positively
This point is a bit tricky because if you do not fully understand the text of Philippians 4:8, you could end up thinking wrongly that your thoughts determine your destiny. I do not want you to leave this blog believing such nonsense. Our thoughts do not create our destiny. Our destinies are already predetermined by God before we were ever born. So, what is the purpose of this text? Before I go into that, it would be helpful if I show you what exactly it says. Philippians 4:8 says the following,
"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things"
There is a profound application to this text that many people seem to overlook. While this text is not saying that your thoughts create your destiny, there is a truth to how your thoughts really do affect how you perceive any given situation. For example, if you find yourself stuck in traffic, you can either complain in your heart about this situation, or you can choose to see this situation as some time to worship the Lord. Whatever you think about a situation will ultimately determine how you perceive that situation.
Another text that I'd like to draw your attention to comes from Matthew 12:34-35. In this text, our Lord says the following,
"You brood of vipers! How can you speak good when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks". The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil"
In this text, Jesus is obviously speaking to the Pharisees, but what He is saying can easily be applied to us all. First, when the Bible mentions "the heart" it does not mention the organ inside of your chest that pumps blood. No, when the Bible mentions "the heart" it is speaking about one's mind. What Jesus is essentially saying is that whatever we are thinking in our minds our mouths will speak. In other words, if we are thinking purely negative thoughts, then our words will be purely negative. However, if we are thinking purely positive thoughts, then our words will be more positive. In other words, our thoughts will cause us to see our situations from either a more negative or positive point of view.
Meditating on His Word
For this point, I'd like to draw your attention to the first chapter of the Psalms. Psalms 1:1-2 says the following,
"Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night"
There is much talk about meditation in these modern times. However, most of the talks concerning meditation seem to be more focused on an Eastern philosophical perspective that tells us to "empty our minds". Biblical meditation is much different from the pagan form of meditation because instead of "emptying our minds", it tells us to fill our minds with His word. The Psalmist is telling us to meditate on His word "day and night". This means that His word should always be on our minds daily. When we focus on filling our minds with Scripture, we will not fall into the way of sinners, nor will we desire to. Many people miss this, but this Scripture also comes with a promise. When it says the man who meditates on His word "day and night", it says that man is "blessed". In some translations "blessed" is another word for "happy". In other words, when we are meditating on His word all the time, we will truly find happiness because our minds will be at peace.
Participating in Fellowship
When we turn to Hebrews 10:23-25, we read the following,
"Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near"
In this text, the writer to the Hebrews encourages his readers to not forsake fellowship with the saints. As some of you may already know, I watch a lot of atheists on YouTube. One of the most common things I hear from these atheists when they talk about their deconversion stories is that at some point before their deconversion process, they stopped going to church. This is truly remarkable, but not very surprising. I say this because the Lord created us as relational beings. We were not meant to be alone and actually, when we isolate from the Body of Christ, we are much more susceptible to the enemy's attacks. When we gather together to worship the Lord together, that is when we can encourage one another in the faith, build one another up, and then "stir up one another to love and good works". Basically, fellowshipping with the Saints gives us a chance to recharge ourselves after a long and grueling week. This is why the fellowship of the Saints is so very important. We definitely need one another to face the daily troubles of living in this world. As Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 tells us,
"Two are better than one because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, and has not another to lift him up! Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone? And though a man prevails against one who is alone, two will withstand him-- a threefold cord is not quickly broken"
Basically, there is strength in numbers. When we are in fellowship with other believers, we will be much stronger and when we are stronger, we are less likely to fall into the sin of grumbling. If we isolate ourselves from the Body of Christ, we are much more susceptible to the sin of grumbling because our minds will be filled with negative thoughts. But, when are in fellowship, we will grumble less because our minds will be filled with positive thoughts.
I hope that this blog helps you to better understand how you can avoid the sin of grumbling. Keep in mind that you will never be able to completely refrain from grumbling. I still get caught in the sin of grumbling from time to time. But, when this happens, I already know that I am covered by the grace of Christ. And so are you covered by the grace of Christ whenever you grumble. Do not walk away from this blog feeling shame for grumbling because there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ (Romans 8:1).
Thank you very much for taking the time to read my blog and may the grace of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ richly bless you all!
-David Lee Chu Sarchet
Christian Mental Health Advocate
Check out the Christ-Centered Mental Health Ministry
1) Prayer
2) Thinking Positively
3) Meditating on His Word
4) Participating In Fellowship
I fully realize that there are more points that I can address that will help you overcome grumbling, but for the sake of this blog, these are the four points that I will choose to focus on. If you can think of any more tips that help you overcome grumbling, please feel free to share them below. I will now elaborate on these four points.
Prayer
When we turn to 1 Peter 5:7, we read the following:
"...casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you"
In this short verse, we see that we are commanded to give God all of our anxieties. Notice how it does not say that your anxiety is sinful. This is an important point to make because some well-meaning Bible teachers have been guilty of condemning all anxiety as being sinful. We need to be careful that we are not doing the same. Anxiety is not always sinful, but we are commanded to go to the Lord with all of our anxiety. Why should we do this? The second half of this verse answers perfectly: "Because he cares for you". Think about this for a second. The Sovereign, omnipotent God of the cosmos cares for you. God controls literally everything that takes place in His creation and yet He still chooses to care for His people. If this does not give us reason to rejoice as we are encouraged to go to Him with all of our fears and anxieties, then I am not sure what will. This same God who breathed an entire complex universe into existence really cares deeply and intimately for His people.
Another passage that I'd like to draw your attention to is Philippians 4:6-7. This text says the following,
"...do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding. will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus"
Here is another text that commands us to bring all of our anxieties to the Lord. We are told to be anxious about nothing because we are bringing everything to Him in prayer. The Sovereign God of the universe already knows us better than we know ourselves because everything we think, say, and do is laid bare before His very eyes. Knowing this fact should make it easy to go to Him because it does not make much sense to attempt to hide anything from Him anyway. One other thing I'd like to point out concerning this text is the fact that it gives us a promise to follow the command. What is this promise? If we actually do bring all of our anxieties to God, the promise is that He will give us perfect peace of mind because He is guarding our hearts and minds. When we fully trust Him and His sovereignty, we will never have anything to worry about because we know deep down that He is always in control. This is why Paul can tell us in verse 4 of chapter 4 of Philippians to rejoice always. This knowledge certainly gives us every reason to rejoice.
Thinking Positively
This point is a bit tricky because if you do not fully understand the text of Philippians 4:8, you could end up thinking wrongly that your thoughts determine your destiny. I do not want you to leave this blog believing such nonsense. Our thoughts do not create our destiny. Our destinies are already predetermined by God before we were ever born. So, what is the purpose of this text? Before I go into that, it would be helpful if I show you what exactly it says. Philippians 4:8 says the following,
"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things"
There is a profound application to this text that many people seem to overlook. While this text is not saying that your thoughts create your destiny, there is a truth to how your thoughts really do affect how you perceive any given situation. For example, if you find yourself stuck in traffic, you can either complain in your heart about this situation, or you can choose to see this situation as some time to worship the Lord. Whatever you think about a situation will ultimately determine how you perceive that situation.
Another text that I'd like to draw your attention to comes from Matthew 12:34-35. In this text, our Lord says the following,
"You brood of vipers! How can you speak good when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks". The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil"
In this text, Jesus is obviously speaking to the Pharisees, but what He is saying can easily be applied to us all. First, when the Bible mentions "the heart" it does not mention the organ inside of your chest that pumps blood. No, when the Bible mentions "the heart" it is speaking about one's mind. What Jesus is essentially saying is that whatever we are thinking in our minds our mouths will speak. In other words, if we are thinking purely negative thoughts, then our words will be purely negative. However, if we are thinking purely positive thoughts, then our words will be more positive. In other words, our thoughts will cause us to see our situations from either a more negative or positive point of view.
Meditating on His Word
For this point, I'd like to draw your attention to the first chapter of the Psalms. Psalms 1:1-2 says the following,
"Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night"
There is much talk about meditation in these modern times. However, most of the talks concerning meditation seem to be more focused on an Eastern philosophical perspective that tells us to "empty our minds". Biblical meditation is much different from the pagan form of meditation because instead of "emptying our minds", it tells us to fill our minds with His word. The Psalmist is telling us to meditate on His word "day and night". This means that His word should always be on our minds daily. When we focus on filling our minds with Scripture, we will not fall into the way of sinners, nor will we desire to. Many people miss this, but this Scripture also comes with a promise. When it says the man who meditates on His word "day and night", it says that man is "blessed". In some translations "blessed" is another word for "happy". In other words, when we are meditating on His word all the time, we will truly find happiness because our minds will be at peace.
Participating in Fellowship
When we turn to Hebrews 10:23-25, we read the following,
"Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near"
In this text, the writer to the Hebrews encourages his readers to not forsake fellowship with the saints. As some of you may already know, I watch a lot of atheists on YouTube. One of the most common things I hear from these atheists when they talk about their deconversion stories is that at some point before their deconversion process, they stopped going to church. This is truly remarkable, but not very surprising. I say this because the Lord created us as relational beings. We were not meant to be alone and actually, when we isolate from the Body of Christ, we are much more susceptible to the enemy's attacks. When we gather together to worship the Lord together, that is when we can encourage one another in the faith, build one another up, and then "stir up one another to love and good works". Basically, fellowshipping with the Saints gives us a chance to recharge ourselves after a long and grueling week. This is why the fellowship of the Saints is so very important. We definitely need one another to face the daily troubles of living in this world. As Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 tells us,
"Two are better than one because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, and has not another to lift him up! Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone? And though a man prevails against one who is alone, two will withstand him-- a threefold cord is not quickly broken"
Basically, there is strength in numbers. When we are in fellowship with other believers, we will be much stronger and when we are stronger, we are less likely to fall into the sin of grumbling. If we isolate ourselves from the Body of Christ, we are much more susceptible to the sin of grumbling because our minds will be filled with negative thoughts. But, when are in fellowship, we will grumble less because our minds will be filled with positive thoughts.
I hope that this blog helps you to better understand how you can avoid the sin of grumbling. Keep in mind that you will never be able to completely refrain from grumbling. I still get caught in the sin of grumbling from time to time. But, when this happens, I already know that I am covered by the grace of Christ. And so are you covered by the grace of Christ whenever you grumble. Do not walk away from this blog feeling shame for grumbling because there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ (Romans 8:1).
Thank you very much for taking the time to read my blog and may the grace of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ richly bless you all!
-David Lee Chu Sarchet
Christian Mental Health Advocate
Check out the Christ-Centered Mental Health Ministry
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