I'm Going To Stop Complaining Long Enough To Be Thankful

Sometimes I grumble and complain. It’s embarrassing to admit but I’m just being honest. I realize this complaining is part of being human but that doesn’t make me less embarrassed about it. Often the complaining does not happen verbally, rather it is an internal complaining to God which happens when I conjure up ideas in my mind of how things in my life are supposed to be.  (I know this sounds insolent but, fortunately, God is even patient and kind with punks like me.)

But if I stop and think carefully I realize I am actually blessed in many ways.  Furthermore, I have been the recipient of many blessings I never earned and do not deserve.  In other words, God has been very gracious to me.  I’m not just saying this, it is the truth.

I write this respectfully and lovingly hoping you might be able to recognize that in spite of life’s problems—very real problems—God has been gracious to you, too.

Nadia Interrupts My Complaining

When my kids were little I would sit down for a few moments and watch “Barney” with them. But it didn’t take long for me to get up, shaking my head and saying, “This is the worst, most inane, most horribly produced show I’ve ever seen! The production values are terrible. It is so stupid that it’s actually painful to watch!”

Standing nearby, Nadia would calmly look at me and say, “Dan, it’s not designed for you. It’s made for kids. The kids like it.”

That is exactly the kind of logic that ruins all of my most effective complaining.