We often hear “Don’t worry, be happy”, but have you ever noticed that people who complain are never happy?  And chances are, if you hang around them very long, you won’t be, either.  Complaining cuts you off from happiness, among a few other things, like prosperity and healing, for example.
    I can imagine what it must be like for God to hear a complainer’s prayer, let’s listen in for a moment:  Oh God, don’t you know my family treats me like dirt?  I work my fanny off for them and never get any appreciation…EVER!   And do you know what my sister did to me??  Not to mention that I work way too many hours for a lot less than others get paid.  God, why don’t you ever bless me?  Why don’t you ever……
About that time the Lord sits back in His throne, puts His head in His hand and woefully says  NEXT, please?
   Seems to me that Philippians 2:14-15 says Do all things without murmuring and disputing; that ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation among whom ye shine as lights in the world.
 Even God himself doesn’t want to hear us complain, else He would not have had it written in the Bible.  Have you ever noticed how uncomfortable you become around a complainer?  And have you ever noticed that complaining is contagious, like a cold?  If you listen to someone griping long enough, pretty soon, you will join in and find something to gripe about with them.  From there it will escalate into seeing who has the most to complain about, OH, WOE IS ME….who has had the most rotten deal in life, and how many years it’s been happening.  Instead of leaving feeling refreshed, you feel kind of, well, YUCK. 
    There are a few things the Lord really hates, and one of them is someone who sows discord among his brethren.  In fact, the Lord hates it so strongly, He calls it an abomination.  We can hardly complain about anything without bringing a person into the picture: he or she did (or didn’t do) this or that.  If you’re sick, you might be complaining the doctor didn’t spend enough time with you, or so and so hasn’t been helpful enough, or the medicine prices are too high.  But everything eventually revolves around what a person has done or said, so when we complain, it comes down to sowing discord, whether we think of it that way or not.  It would be bad enough if we were just complaining about the weather, but even that would be blaming God.  When we murmur and complain, it’s pretty obvious we are not happy with what the Lord has dealt us, or allowed us to go through.  God wants His children to be without rebuke, even though we live in a twisted society, that is, one that largely rejects God and His way of doing things, without complaining! Why?  So people will see Him in us.

    Does that mean we are to take whatever the devil throws at us without complaint?  Yes and no:  Yes, we are to be thankful before God no matter what the circumstance, without complaint or murmuring, BUT no, God does not intend that we just roll over and play dead when the devil tries to put his junk on us.  There is a difference, you know.  If you are a child of God, then sickness does not belong to you, because the Lord Jesus bought and paid for all your sicknesses and diseases with His own blood.  How do you get rid of sickness when it comes calling?  Complain?  No, that doesn’t help.  But that doesn’t mean you have to accept it, either.  You firmly resist and rebuke sickness in the name of Christ Jesus of Nazareth.  The Bible tells us that every knee must bow to Jesus, the name above every name, and He has given us His name to use to bring things in line with His will.  Part of His divine will for you is that we be in good health.  Complaining and murmuring about sickness will do nothing but draw more attention to your discomfort, and will turn God’s ear off to your prayers.  There’s a better way to do battle with sickness, and that is to acknowledge the Lord Jesus has ownership of it.  He bought and paid for ALL your sins, and ALL your sickness, period. And He did it without complaint, may I add.  Why?  So that He might show His awesome love for you.  It’s HIS, not yours, and you need to continually thank Him that He bore your sins and sicknesses to set you free.  And as long as you’re complaining about YOUR sickness, YOUR diabetes, YOUR arthritis, then it’s YOURS, not HIS.  See where I’m going with this?
    What do we do, then?  Well, Psalm 100 offers us some real good advice:
Psa 100:1  Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands.
Psa 100:2  Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing.
Psa 100:3  Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Psa 100:4  Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.
Psa 100:5  For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.
    If we really believe this, that the Lord’s mercy is everlasting, then we will have to acknowledge that He has shown us mercy.  Are those of you who have received His mercy still complaining?  Then it would be safe to say you feel He has lied to you, else you would be jumping with joy right now.  Personally, I find that offering thanksgiving to God not only makes God feel better, but it makes ME feel better as well.  It says “enter into His gates with thanksgiving”, not “enter into His gates ON thanksgiving”.  We don’t thank God enough for all He does for us, so that means we’re in danger of being unthankful, spoiled brats.  We’ve all been around unthankful people, right?  Now, if YOU don’t like being around them, how do you think GOD feels?
    When we thank God and praise Him, we are giving Him his rightful place in our life as our Lord and Master.  Doing so shows not just our submission to Him, but also to His will for us.  God’s will for is that we prosper and be in health even as our soul prospers.  Friend, if your soul isn’t prospering, then the rest of you isn’t doing very well either.  When we go to God with thanksgiving and praise, grace flows from the heavenly Father to help us overcome every, and I mean EVERY obstacle. 
   God is not stingy with His love for us, in fact, He loves us so very extravagantly, overwhelmingly, exceeding abundantly above all we can ask or think, that we should consider Him, then look at our situation, and say, God, you are so very good to me!!.  And when you do that, you will find you have nothing to complain about.  For if God be for you, then who can be against you?  If God be for you, who cares who is against you?  There will never be a day as long as you live on this earth that someone will not grumble and complain about something, and you have two clear choices of action: either you can join them and miss out on God’s best for you, or you can just thank God and praise Him, no matter what you are facing.  Because sooner or later, those who honor God win.  And nobody complains about winning!
   Is it hard to find something to be thankful for when you’re going through a personal crisis?  God does not promise “payday on Friday”, in other words, you may have to be faithful and thank and praise Him for a while before you will see your hope manifested.  But when He says “ENOUGH!”, and your deliverance comes through like the sun bursting forth on a cloudy day, Oh my!  How you will praise God then!  The longer you complain, the longer you will wait.  So it’s really up to you partly.  God is faithful, even if you aren’t.  But when you are faithful not to complain, and you’re showering God with thanksgiving and praise, you can be sure when you pray, God won’t cut you off short and say….NEXT please??   No.  He will scoot forward on the Throne, smiling big, and saying to the angels, Listen!  That’s my beloved’s voice calling to Me!