Complaining Vs. Thankfulness

Last night I could not sleep, so I turned on the TV and found a program that exposed human trafficking of young girls in India.  There was story after story of these innocent girls being sold into slavery (often by there own families) and being placed as abused laborers in homes or being stashed in brothels for sex.  I became angry, disgusted, and ready to fight.  I had questions like: where are these ladies fathers, where are the men who need to step up?

But, toward the end of the program I began to have another unlikely emotion: hope and gratitude.  I began to see stories of rescue and restoration of some of the girls.  I was grateful for people like our good friends Jay and Michelle over at Hope For The Sold for bringing this fight to the forefront.  But mostly, I was inspired by a 14 year old girl's grateful attitude, a young lady who had been through hell and was growing up in one of the poorest villages in India.  She excuberated hope and gratitude when she received a sewing machine.  A s-e-w-i-n-g machine. 

Be Grateful...Ok, I Get It!  (But Do I, Really?)

I have really been bombarded with books, articles, and situations that have been exposing my need to change my heart: stop the complaining and be more thankful (think God is trying to tell me something?).  With good reason, ungratefulness has become a character staple in my life.  From money to mushrooms on my pizza, I love to get my gripe on.

Come on, I know I am not the only one out there, right? (insert akward silence with cricket sounds here)  We all are guilty of complaining.  I believe that the reason we fuss so much is because we have a warped perspective.  For example, we loathe going to our jobs, until we spend some time without one.  We take family for granted, until one of them gets shipped over seas and we have to be apart for months at a time.  We get tired of our car, until it breaks down and we have to call a buddy and bum a ride to the store. 

I believe that this is not only bad for those who have to listen to it around us, but it wrecks the most havoc on ourselves.  Complaining has a way of keeping us from our goal of a happy, successful life.  Similar to harboring unforgiveness in our hearts, ungratefulness becomes a poison that hurts US the most.  This becomes a self imposed prison that keeps us from being our best and making an impact on this world.

From Prison to Praise

I recently read the book Prison to Praise.  This little book was a short read, but it packed a powerful punch in regards to impacting me and my view of circumstances.  It is the story of a military chaplain that found the secret to a victorious life.  It started with him developing a relationship with Jesus, then learning to be thankful even for the rough things in life.  

But, how can I be thankful for the tough stuff?  How do I be thankful about a rebellious child, or perhaps a terminal illness, or how can I be grateful for financial circumstances that are so tough that the lights go out because you could not pay the electric bill? (I am speaking from experience on this one).  Here is why: God works ALL things out for those who love Him (Romans 8:28). 

This little book contains testimonial after testimonial of how when people started seeing their situation differently, and started thanking God for how He could use tragedy for good, an interesting thing occurred: their situations started to change.  Things people had prayed about for years, started changing immediately, when they thanked God for ALL of their circumstances: the good and the bad.

This Sounds a Little Churchy

The truth is, I believe everyone wants to have success doing what they love and serving others with the gifts and talents they have.  Who better to trust with the direction of our lives than the one who shaped us in our mother's womb? (side note: Sarah is due any day now, so keep praying for us).  God is not here for just churchy people, in fact it was those religious folks that gave Jesus the most grief.  He is here for everyone: rich and poor, hungry and homeless, MBAs and dropouts, Methodist and Muslims, me and you. 

I know that bad things will continue to happen in this world, and I will never be able to understand why or how it can be used for good.  But I believe that changing our complaining into gratitude will be the avenue for a stronger, happier life.  Then we will be equipped to serve others and go further than we ever thought possible.  Check out the video of Nick Vujicic for a living example. 

Get Strong Anywhere,

C.J. Brown