Do you complain?

Why do we always complain when things don’t go the way we want them to or think they should? Is it because we infallibly know that something is wrong and God should fix it, or is it because we simply don’t believe that the way things fell out is the way they’re supposed to be, or is it because we simply don’t like the way things are?

It can’t be the 1st option–because we infallibly know something to be wrong. Only God is infallible. Besides, God is also sovereign and in perfect control of all that happens. His infallible and eternal decree is the dictate of His daily wise  and good providence. To suggest that something is wrong is to suggest that God has either lost control or doesn’t have control. Neither of which Scripture supports and both of which Scripture clearly refuses.

Is it the 2d option, then? Actually it’s both the 2d and the 3d. Sometimes we complain when things don’t go our way because we don’t believe–or we refuse to believe–that what has happened could possibly be God’s will. Especially when the thing in question is painful, or costly, or the result of wrongdoing. We simply can’t believe that God would’ve planned it the way it turned out. We can’t see how God could allow our loved one to die, or how God could allow us to lose our job when we just had our 3d child, or how God could allow that man to lose our life savings on a bad business deal.

For one, this way of thinking is occasioned by unbelief. Has not God taught us that He’s in perfect control, not only of the stars and planets of the universe, but of every little detail of life–especially of the lives of His own children whom He loves? And has He not promised us that He will work everything together for our good? We have no reason not to trust Him. We have no reason not to believe His promises. Unbelief is our worst enemy because it attacks the very faithfulness of God.

Secondly, this way of thinking dares to question the wisdom of God’s unerring providence. God is all-wise and goodness itself. He can only do good and He cannot err. His eternal decree is the best plan that could possibly be. If there were a better way then God would have planned it that way. But because He is all-wise and only good, the way He’s planned is perfect. What He’s doing we may not understand now, but we will understand later. And when we see our lives from the other end, from heaven, we’ll not only see that it could not have been any other way than it was, but we’ll praise Him for the way it was because we’ll see how absolutely perfect it was. Besides, how many times have we thought something was wrong only to find ourselves to have been wrong?

But sometimes we complain when things don’t go our way because we simply don’t like the way they’ve gone. This is the childish temper tantrum approach to providence. We want our own way and we refuse to be happy with God’s. It’s amazing that God puts up with our childish behavior. If He didn’t love us, He’d treat us as our sins deserve. What a mercy that He not only gives us time to repent but also draws us out in repentance by His Spirit. And that’s the only answer for this kind of childish complaining. We need to repent of our selfishness.

Moses made no mistake when he said of God, “The Rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are justice. A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, just and upright is he” (Dt 32.4). Neither did David when he said of God, “This God—his way is perfect; the word of the LORD proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him” (Ps 18.30).

Complaining about God’s ways is a sin and we need to repent of it. And instead, we need to trust Him and take Him at His Word. All His ways are perfect. He does all things well. He is in perfect control. He sees the end from the beginning and takes no steps along the way that will not infallibly, beautifully, and righteously lead to the end He ordained. And He who is God is our God, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and having given us Christ for our salvation, it is impossible that He should not give us all that we need along the way, it is impossible that He can do us anything but matchless and perfect good.

The next time things don’t go your way–probably today–instead of complaining, offer to God a sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving. Call Him good, call His providence good, and call yourself incomparably blessed to be His child and in His hands. Your faith will become sight and your hope will become reality. Just wait and see! The end is not yet, but when it is, you’ll praise Him. So praise Him now as you will then!