Without Complaining - Philippians 2:14 - 16

"14Do all things without grumbling or questioning, 15that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, 16holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain."

It was hot, I was sweaty most of the time, the rides were long, the seats uncomfortable, and I couldn't hardly understand half of what anyone was saying - yet I woke up without fail at the crack of dawn to meet the Lord in prayer and in His Word to prepare for a joyous day of service and travel to people I didn't know and couldn't understand. And for the whole 10 days it was truly joyous. I was doing what I loved.

Fast forward to this week. It's back to the job Monday, back to the mundane, the comfortable, the busy, and the known and understood - and I can hardly crack open my eyes and slam the snooze button like a lifeline until the very minute I HAVE to get up and be to work on time. I haven't spent time with the Lord all week in His Word as I did in the foreign land. My heart is downcast and I'm complaining. In fact, just last night I was heartbroken to learn that my wife thought that I'd rather be away from her and my beloved daughter and in Honduras - this is how bad that sour attitude has been coming out.

Do I have a good excuse?

When I was in Honduras, I saw that the Lord does what He pleases, just like the Scripture says. I saw that it pleases the Lord to save people and conform them to His image. I saw that it pleases the Lord to exercise His grace in restoring one of His own who had fallen into sin. I saw that it pleases the Lord to teach His people to chew on the meat of His word and grow in holiness as they are conformed into the image of His Son, the Lord Jesus. I saw Him answer prayers to help us make the most of our time while we were there, and we completed what we came to do; He answered prayers to soften our hears, and soften the hearts of the Hondurans to receive the teaching we'd give them; He answered prayers to make us bold in sharing the Gospel, which many who had been timid did despite language barriers. In short, our Lord is not hindered by anyone or anything - just like the scripture says, He does what He pleases. What does this have to do with Philippians 2:14-16 and me complaining?

Philippians 2:14-16 commands us to do all things without grumbling or questioning (both imply a negative sense). "But my life is so busy and mundane here! I wasn't hindered there like I am here, and I did what I loved there - here I have to do what I need to do!" So? Has God somehow changed the way He operates just because I have to live life here in the USA? My Lord conforms the Hondurans - who have busy, mundane, need-to-do-this kind of lives like me - into the image of His Son amid and using all of those things to glorify Himself in all of those things - am I so arrogant to say that He is hindered by me? Certainly NOT! But isn't that exactly what I say when I walk according to my flesh and grumble, and not according to the Spirit, seeking love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control to the glory of Jesus Christ?

So, do I have any excuses at all? Seems like Jesus defeats them all. So what now? I repent. If I'm to be an approved workman, my heart's desire should be to seek the will of my Master over my own. And at the end of the day, my love should be for my Master, and not just the work I do, true?