From Worship to Whining

Complaint is easy and very dangerous. It lingers around where worship is not present. Keep Reading...

PRAY
Father God, Come close and speak to me. Your Word is alive, just as You are. Change me as I read Your living words. In Jesus' name, Amen.

READ
Exodus 15:22-25 - Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness and found no water. When they came to Marah, they could not drink the waters of Marah, for they were bitter; therefore it was named Marah.

So the people grumbled at Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” Then he cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a tree; and he threw it into the waters, and the waters became sweet.

There He made for them a statute and regulation, and there He tested them.

REFLECT
After a time of great victory often comes a time of testing. Will the thanksgiving continue? Will the faith in God's ongoing provision last? The Israelites arrived at this test and failed.

It only took three days for the Israelites to forget the miracle of the Red Sea parting. Could this God of unimaginable power help them now? They didn’t need a Sea to part. They only needed water. And they didn’t think God could or would give them that.

How quick we are to forget all the miracles God has done in our lives. Our selective memory stirs up unbelief and complaint against God. Maybe God provided for me in the past… but where is he now? Our current pressing need overshadows the memory of God's faithfulness.

When our worship turns to whining, God is not glorified. Our complaint is a direct affront to who he is. In fact, it this complaint that ultimately kept the Israelites out of the Promised Land.

Complaint destroys. The decision to whine instead of worship will result in a loss of your inheritance. Choose to worship in the midst of your need. God will reveal his miracles yet again.

APPLY
Do you allow complaint to linger in your mind and mouth? Allow the Holy Spirit to convict you of even small amounts of complaint. Turn from this sin through repentance. Now get worship flowing out of your mouth.  Let thanksgiving lead you through the wilderness.

READ MORE
Hebrews 3:7-19