What is the big deal about throwing a complaint around now and again? To complain is to simply be honest, right? It is stating a truth; this or that situation is unsatisfactory. Should you not be honest and define a dissatisfaction or two? Or label a circumstance as being unacceptable? How about a bit of grumbling, maybe more appropriate? It is a more muted approach to protesting something that should be labeled unacceptable. Isn’t murmuring better yet? It implies a soft quiet voice, a subdued expression of disapproval. Not bad, three words to choose from and any one could fit the occasion: an outright complaint, a more low key grumble or the quite voice of a murmur. Thank you Jesus for all the options, right?

Maybe we should slow down and think this through, for I have employed all three in my arsenal against life and I have to tell you it has not fared well. My complaints, grumblings, and murmurs opened me up to a world that was quite inaccurate, for while I was doing all this stellar complaining, grumbling and murmuring, I was blind to the work of God. 

Here is my approach: Elijah’s stream dries up at the Kerith Brook and his heaven-provided provision ends with it. Had it been me, I may have, no doubt, been disappointed and found the circumstance unacceptable, after which I may have been tempted to murmur. No, that’s unlikely. No one was around to be soft spoken for, so I may have heated it up a couple of notches and grumbled. Again, not likely, because no one was around. I may have launched into an outright complaint, “What the heck are you doing God? This is unacceptable!” Of course this would have been done at the top of my lungs. The downside of complaining—you can’t hear God (you are talking too loud), you can’t see God (you are focused on the problem), you can’t get further direction from Him—for at the moment of complaint you want no direction you just want out.

When I complain, I cannot see the truth of the benefit of what is unacceptable to me, but I can be honest with my feelings and complain. Odd isn’t it? I can be honest with my feelings and complain and be dishonest with reality that says that what I am complaining about could really end up being beneficial. So the question I put to myself is, What do I want to be honest with myself about? What I feel or what is the truth? One will lead to a complaint, the other to praise.

So here are three replacement words I am trying to work on these days.

Praise—expressions of warm approval and admiration.

Sing Praise—expressions of warm approval and admiration put to music so affection can also be expressed.

High Praise—expressions that break through all barriers and militantly lift approval and admiration above all circumstances.

I have practiced all six responses to circumstances. In case you are interested, the three praise responses win the day outright. They keep my heart tuned to reality and my spirit steady when I am confused.