COMPLAINERS ANONYMOUS?

“Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer.” (I Corinthians 10:10)

That’s from the old-fashioned King James Version.

“The Jerusalem Bible” (one of scores of more “up-to-date” versions) says, “You must never complain: some of them did, and they were killed by the Destroyer.”

Complaining. Boy, that’s a “loaded” subject for me! I hate to admit it, but my nature is to be a complainer. I’m also a “perfectionist” and I think those traits go hand-in-hand. If you’re a perfectionist you actually struggle with a lot of frustration because NOTHING in this life is truly perfect, and since nothing is perfect, well, you complain!

I’ve often thought that when Andy Rooney retires from CBS’ “60 Minutes” I should replace him because I have a different and creative way at looking at life, I’m a pretty good writer, and like him, I’m a complainer. Yes, I’m one of those who wonders why Kellogg’s doesn’t put as many “Smacks” in the cereal box as they used to, or why paper clips seem to be getting smaller and flimsier...stuff like that.

Andy Rooney is (I think) likable. He’s what some people call a curmudgeon. Many complainers are just NOT likable. When my kids were much younger, they were on our church’s “Junior Bible Quiz” team. In the Assemblies of God, there are parents and pastors who take “Junior Bible Quiz” more seriously than just about anything. (You should see the J.B.Q. rulebook!) There are regional “meets”, and ultimately J.B.Q. goes all the way to national championships. Back in the 1990s, I was a J.B.Q. “Quizmaster” which meant I asked the questions, and determined if an answer was correct...well, it meant I was kind of an Alex Trebek. The kids had fun. The parents? Well, that’s another story. I guess they never read about what Jesus said about the Pharisees “straining at a gnat to swallow a camel” because, well, that’s pretty much what they did. They nit-piked and complained, and that just wasn’t much fun.

I guess I’m like a lot of complainers, because I like to complain, but I very much DON’T like to be complained TO! My kids were very embarrassed at a Wendy’s drive thru a number of years ago when I emphatically insisted at the window that I was cheated out of one of the containers of chili that I’d ordered. Well, I WAS, but my kids said I acted like a jerk and it just wasn’t worth it. Maybe they’re right. I felt very bad when former President Richard M. Nixon passed away. This surprised me because when he was President I couldn’t stand him. I thought he was a very dishonest guy who was bad for our country. But the day he was buried, I told my mother over the phone, “I honestly feel bad for the guy. He had to listen to everybody complaining and now so do I.” (In those days our church was having major problems with the Town of Framingham. We were on the verge of being shut down and most of the people in the church blamed me for it and COMPLAINED.) Yeah, when you start thinking Nixon wasn’t a bad guy, well, you’ve been listening to a lot of complaints!

It occurs to be that in 2008, I’ve listened to MORE complaints than I’ve heard in a LONG time, and I frankly don’t like it. But, I’m also aware that I’ve been DOING a LOT of complaining lately! It’s like a vicious cycle. Somebody complains to you. It makes you mad. You don’t like it, and so what do you do? YOU go out and complain about something to somebody else. And it goes on and on. It’s like “pay it forward” only in a VERY BAD WAY.

Yesterday was kind of a lousy day for me. And, YEAH, boy did I do my share of complaining yesterday! In the late afternoon, I received an e-mail Forward from a friend encouraging me to watch an inspirational youtube video. I almost didn’t watch it. After all, I was in a mood to complain, not watch an inspirational video. But, I DID watch it. It was a 5 minute presentation by a guy who has no arms or legs. Well, he has SORT OF a left foot, but that’s about it. The guy is a Christian and has a powerful ministry. You can guess what happened after I watched the video. I stopped the complaining and the lousy mood.

How about if we REALLY “pay it forward”? I’ll make a conscious effort to have an attitude of gratitude and do less complaining. I’m encouraging you to do the same!