A Devotional thought from Psalm 142
I poured out my complaint before him;
I shewed before him my trouble. Psalm 142:2
I have read that nothing is more displeasing to God than complaining saints.
I believe there is a way in which that statement is true. The Lord was very displeased and punished Israel for their grumbling in the wilderness (Num. 14:2). Personally, I have been at a restaurant with some “sanctified saints” that can’t find anything praiseworthy in the food or the service and have been quite embarrassed for the name of Christ. For the most part, constant complaining does not look good on the Christian.
I believe that there is a way however in which complaining is actually pleasing to the Lord.
We see such an example of correct complaint in our text. What is the difference? It is simply the direction in which we send our complaints.
In this blessing of a Psalm, David carries his complaints to God. Our Heavenly Father never desires pretense in prayer! He wants you to come before him and lay your heart bare. Don’t feel that you have to fake anything with him, after all, he already knows the truth. Some might ask, why then pray at all? If he already knows how I feel and if he knows what I need, then why even waste my time? Ah dear Christian, don’t you think that our biggest problem may be that we simply need to know ourselves? Before our Father forgives he requires confession, does it not make sense that he would also want this same self awareness before he comforts or corrects? If we don’t understand where we begin the journey then how will we ever comprehend the distance of it? How will we be able to appreciate the work our Lord has done both in and through us without some comprehension of the starting point? So, go ahead and carry those complaints to your Father, he will often change your situation and will always change you. Don’t be surprised when he transforms the complaints we carry into Christ exalting praise!