Jul 24, 2018

War and Peace


Christian surrender means the death of complaining.
~ Gary Thomas, Seeking the Face of God
The Business Administrator at our church, Jeff, was a trusted co-worker and friend, who supported the youth ministry. But as the Administrator, we were often at odds. Once, I picked up a per diem check for a youth trip only to discover I’d made a mistake. Jeff politely informed me that, because of my mistake, I needed to gather all the per diem receipts to prove I hadn’t spent the money for personal use.
The trip covered 1,600 miles with 85 high school students and counselors. How would I ever collect all their receipts! It was an impossible request. Diabolically, I collected receipts the entire week far exceeding the nearly one thousand dollars I was accountable for, and when I returned, dumped them on Jeff’s desk!
Unbeknownst to Jeff, I’d declared war! I was in a bad place. 
A week later, I left on my first sabbatical in two decades and returned a different man. I asked Jeff for forgiveness, we both had a good laugh along with an awkward man hug, and all the receipts ended up on the floor of my office a week later! Well played, Jeff.
Complaining is often a relational declaration of war. Complaining can be the outward response of an unhealthy heart. It’s the negative expression of a life not fully surrendered to Jesus Christ and subsequently not fully alive. I realized my lack of peace was the fruit of a life that needed to re-surrender to Christ.
Galatians 2:20 brought this to life: “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
Complaining doesn’t fix things. If action is needed to right a wrong, then fix it and stop complaining. What part of your complaining needs your response of surrender and repentance?