How to Complain to God?
Complaining also keeps people from taking action. It gives excuses to procrastinate and keep from achieving goals. It’s always much easier to complain than to find a solution. Another reason people complain is to avoid responsibility.
A Maskil of David,
When he was in the cave. A prayer.
Psalm 142
God frequently expects us to experience pain, and therefore frequently express our pain
I cry aloud to the Lord; I plead aloud to the Lord for mercy. I pour out my complaint before Him; I reveal my trouble to Him.
Psalm 142:1-2
4 Observations from this scripture:
- I cry
- I’m pleading aloud
- I bring my complaint before the Lord
- I reveal my trouble
Although my spirit is weak within me, you know my way. Along the path I travel they have hidden a trap for me. Look to the right and see: no one stands up for me; there is no refuge for me; no cares about me.
Psalm 142:3-7
Listen to my cry, for I am very weak. Rescue me from those who pursue me, for they are too strong for me. Free me from prison so that I can praise your name. The righteous will gather around me because you deal generously with me.
Psalm 142:3-7
The entire Israelite community grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the Lord’s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat by pots of meat and ate all the bread we wanted.
Instead, you brought us into this wilderness to make this whole assembly dies of hunger!”
Exodus 16:2-3
1. We should complain about our context, Not the Lord’s character.
2. View the Lord as your portion, not as your prosecutor.
“When you complain, your body releases the stress hormone cortisol. … All the extra cortisol released by frequent complaining impairs your immune system and makes you more susceptible to high cholesterol, diabetes, heart disease and obesity. It even makes the brain more vulnerable to strokes”