by Elder Mike Chon
I have been blessed to have three children that are full of energy and who love to be with each other. There is no shortage of laughing at our house but at times, believe it or not, our children complain. I’m sure this is something that all parents have experienced more than they would like. Whether it’s a toy they want, having to brush their teeth, or a response to the type of food that is given to them…there is no shortage of complaining. As parents we continue to remind them that they have no reason to complain if they learn to be content (Phil. 4:11). We continually teach and remind them that we have been created by God and that everything we have is truly a gift from the Lord. Therefore we have no reason to complain but instead we should be thankful for all things.
Even though we can observe children and how silly their complaints can be (for instance, when they complain that they can’t get a certain toy when they have almost the exact same one already at home), we need to look at ourselves and see how easily it is for us to complain. How many times have we complained about how long the line is, or how slow the service is, or how our kids are always complaining? The discontent in our heart is the same discontent in our children’s hearts. That is definitely a great lesson that we have been learning through our children. No matter how silly their complaints are we realize that our hearts are also complaining. God calls us to be thankful in all things (Colossians 3:15) and to stop complaining (Phil. 2:14). What message are we sending to our children when we quote verses and teach them that they should be content when in our own lives and hearts we complain?
Most of us have complained about something but we may not even give a second thought to the seriousness of that type of attitude. It reveals that we are not content first and foremost in our relationship with Jesus Christ. We complain because life does not go the way that we would like it to go. We are almost shocked when someone gets in the way of our plans, our desires, and our comforts. Complaining only shows our lack of trust in God and our lack of a thankful heart to God. As believers we are challenged to be a light in this world (Phil. 2:14-15) and most of the time that comes in the context of the little choices and attitudes that we display every single day. Our complaints are different than those of children, but they all stem from the same heart issues. May we find our contentment in Christ alone and follow the example of our Lord as He faced injustice, affliction, ridicule, punishment, and was rejected but never complained (Isaiah 53:7).