Who Are Grumble To God?
Grumbling to God is one of the world’s most popular pastimes.
People grumble to God when the temperature is too hot or too cold, and when it rains or snows too much or too little.
People grumble when the stock market goes down, or even when the “wrong” stocks go up at the “wrong” time.
And imagine how complex things get in the cases of competitions or wars in which one side wins and the other loses.
Whether it’s the Green Bay Packers v. the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Lakers v. the Nets, or the North v. the South in the Civil War, God often hears from roughly equal numbers of people on either side who are disappointed with how things turned out.
The Book of Job is full of grumbling. And who wouldn’t complain if subjected to the kinds of trials and tribulations Job faced?
Job was a godly and prosperous man. But what happened when his prosperity disappeared and unimaginable suffering set in? Did he remain godly, or did he get angry and turn his back on God?
Readers can see for themselves. Job continued to honor God, often in spite of the misguided assistance his friends offered.
They spent most of their time trying to persuade Job that his own sin brought on the many problems he was facing.
Finally, after thirty-seven chapters of humans’ grumbling and blaming, God stepped in and let readers know what he thought about Job’s predicament.
God made his case by asking a series of probing questions:
Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?
Who shut up the sea behind doors?
Have you ever given orders to the morning or shown the dawn its place?
Have the gates of death been shown to you?
What is the way to the abode of light?
Who cuts a channel for the torrents of rain and a path for the thunderstorms?
Do you send the lightning bolts on their way? (Job 38: 4, 8, 12, 17, 19, 25, 35)
In other words, God had a simple message for Job or anyone who would question divine wisdom: “Look, you don’t know what I know.
In fact, you don’t know even half of it. So settle down. Quit your grumbling, and trust me.”
Pain and suffering are powerful feelings. When our bodies are ailing, our minds are troubled, or our loved ones are hurt or killed, it’s difficult to continue trusting God.
God doesn’t tell us to ignore our sufferings or to pretend they don’t exist. He just wants us to remember that he’s God—we aren’t— and grumbling isn’t necessary.
And he wants us to remember that he’s still in charge of the whole wide universe, including the little portion of it where we live.
Forgive me, Father, when I doubt your wisdom and sovereignty. Help me submit my stubborn will to your hands.