Nor complain, as some of them also complained, and were destroyed by the destroyer.
1 Corinthians 10:10 (NKJV)
We’ve been on a series in this devotional talking about what we as believers need to resist in life. We have the power to resist the temptation to change our morals, our standards, what we believe, what we stand for, and anything that prevents us from having what God has promised us in His Word. The trouble is, sometimes we think we are resisting these things when really we are not.
You see, complaining isn’t the same thing as resisting. Often we think that if we’re complaining about something, we’re expressing our stand against it, but mere complaining is a form of submission. When all we do is complain, what we’re saying is, “I don’t like this, but I’m not going to do anything to change it.”
In fact, complaining short-circuits your faith, and today’s verse warns that this has consequences. It refers to when the children of Israel complained on their way to the Promised Land and started a plague that killed 14,700 people. (See Numbers 16:41-50.) It’s not that God punishes us for complaining, but when we complain, it means we’re not in faith, and we need to have faith to walk in God’s promises.
Instead of complaining, declare God’s promises. If others are taking advantage of you, set boundaries and stick to them. For example, if your kids are leaving the house a mess, set clear expectations and consequences. To experience the power of positive resistance, have this attitude: “I may not like things the way they are, but I believe that God has given me the power to change things, so I’m going to put some effort in and I’m going to make things different!”