June 2, 2016
Philippians 2:14 &15 says, “Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” After spending just two days in Haiti I can say with confidence that we need to take this Scripture much more seriously. Life here is so different and there are so many ways in which it appears more difficult that it seems to me that we have nothing to grumble or complain about. When I think about how crazy things get in the States when we have to deal with inconveniences such as black outs or snow storms it seems as if we are really spoiled. As followers of Jesus we need to get over that. We need to show those around us what a life lived in grace looks like. We need to show them what the power of the Holy Spirit can accomplish in a soul that is surrendered to Him. And maybe a big place to start is to stop grumbling and complaining about things in our lives. That is especially so when the things we so often complain about are so petty in the grand scheme of things.
Paul says that we need to become blameless and pure in the midst of a warped and crooked generation. Dealing with our grumbling and complaining helps us to take a big step in that direction. This is especially so because complaining is as common as talking. People complain about everything. If the train is late or it’s raining out or they ask us to do something extra at work, whatever. If we can get a grip on our complaining we will certainly standout in this warped world. We may not like that idea, it’s much more common to just blend in, but that is God’s calling for us. We need to embrace it. And now I can say first hand that most of what we deal with is not even worth complaining about. Let’s get a grip and give God more room in our lives.
Please continue to pray for our team that God would continue to use us in a big way here in Haiti. I will give a full report during Sunday’s sermon. Make sure you come out to hear all about it. May God continue to bless you and keep you throughout the week and forever more.
In Jesus,
Pastor Phil