Levo
Bible verses for complaining
Grumbling and self-pity
The lie
I deserve better than this, and God isn't paying attention.
The truth
Complaining tells God He got it wrong. Lament brings the hurt to Him. One turns your back on Him, the other turns you toward Him. Gratitude changes what you see.
More truth
- You can be honest about hard things without grumbling.
- Self-pity makes you the centre of the story.
- Thank God for three things, and the room changes.
Pause
Stop. Breathe. Before the next complaint, name one thing you're thankful for.
My verses
Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and perverse generation, in which you shine as lights in the world
Rejoice at all times. Pray without ceasing. Give thanks in every circumstance, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
Soon the people began to complain about their hardship in the hearing of the LORD, and when He heard them, His anger was kindled, and fire from the LORD blazed among them and consumed the outskirts of the camp.
And do not complain, as some of them did, and were killed by the destroying angel.
Bless the LORD, O my soul, and do not forget all His kind deeds.
Do not complain about one another, brothers, so that you will not be judged. Look, the Judge is standing at the door!
I am not saying this out of need, for I have learned to be content regardless of my circumstances. I know how to live humbly, and I know how to abound. I am accustomed to any and every situation—to being filled and being hungry, to having plenty and having need. I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.
This is the day that the LORD has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.
Why should any mortal man complain, in view of his sins? Let us examine and test our ways, and turn back to the LORD.
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, for to this you were called as members of one body. And be thankful.
The lines of my boundary have fallen in pleasant places; surely my inheritance is delightful.
And we know that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose.
Pray
Lord, I've been grumbling again. Forgive me for acting as if You've forgotten me. Open my eyes to what You've given me today. Turn my complaints into prayers and my self-pity into thanks. Amen.
Your way out
- Name three things you're thankful for, out loud.
- Turn the complaint into a prayer: tell God, not everyone else.
- Do something kind for someone who has it harder.
- Leave the conversation that has turned into a moan.
- Write down one thing you can change, and change it.
Lament is allowed
The Psalms are full of honest complaints brought to God. That's lament, and it's good. Grumbling is complaining about God behind His back.
I cry aloud to the LORD; I lift my voice to the LORD for mercy. I pour out my complaint before Him; I reveal my trouble to Him.
Go deeper: Thanks in everything
Five days in the Bible on this, one passage a day.
- Grumbling in the desert Numbers 11:1-6
- Forget not His benefits Psalm 103:1-5
- Learning contentment Philippians 4:10-13
- Yet I will rejoice Habakkuk 3:17-19
- In everything 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18