“Why do you complain, Jacob? Why do you say, Israel, ‘My way is hidden from the Lord; my cause is disregarded by my God’? Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint” (Isaiah 40:27-29,31).
Growing up, I had a reoccurring thought as I learned about the Old Testament believers: Boy, for being God’s people, they sure do a lot of grumbling and complaining.
I never really understood why the Old Testament believers did so much complaining. Think of all the things they got to see and experience:
The ten plagues of Egypt, pillars of cloud and fire leading them through the wilderness, enough food and water for all of the people (and their livestock too!), the walls of Jericho falling down, subjecting entire armies and nations before them, and the list goes on and on, all the way to the time of these verses from Isaiah and beyond . . .
The complaints are nearly constant! Trace the Israelites’ footsteps (as a nation and as individual believers) through the pages of Scripture, and you’ll quickly see that to be true. The reasons all vary, but at the heart of those complaints is a lack of trust in God’s promise and power to provide for his people—even though time and time again he showed them how much he loved and cared for them.
Why did they keep complaining? God told them how much he loved them in so many different ways. He never left them or abandoned them. Even when they were in exile, he was right there with them.
Didn’t they know that?
It’s easy to point the finger at someone else and make observations about his or her faults and shortcomings. It’s harder for me to admit my own as I examine my life.
Boy, for being God’s child, I sure do a lot of grumbling and complaining.
My complaints, while different from the Israelites’ complaints, are no less incessant. Some complaints are about small and trivial problems, such as bad weather or backed-up traffic on the freeway. Others are about large and significant problems, such as a loved one’s failing health or some aspect of life not going the way I want it to go.
Why do I complain?
If I’m being honest with myself, it’s because I’m focusing on the problems in my life—the source of my complaints—and jumping to wrong conclusions about what those problems say about God and whether or not he cares about me. It’s so easy to cry out alongside the Israelites, “My way is hidden; disregarded by my God!”
Perhaps it’s easy for you to do that too.
Dear Christian, our focus needs to be on what God says and promises in his Word.
Our God is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He doesn’t grow tired or weary, and his understanding cannot be fathomed! He loves us so much that he sent his Son, Jesus, to live a perfect life and die the death we deserve to rescue us from the bondage of our sins. He is the covenant keeper, the promise giver, our Savior, and our Redeemer.
God is with us and he is for us. Our present circumstances and sufferings in life do not dictate whether God is truly present in our lives. He promises he is. Our way is not hidden from God. Our cause is not disregarded by him. He loves us. He gives strength to us when we’re weary and increases our power when we’re weak. How? By pointing us to the cross—to our Savior, Jesus. He walks with us every step of the way home to heaven.
What incredible knowledge that changes everything for us: how we live, how we act, and how we react to the things that happen in life. Our hope is in the Lord and the promises he makes in his Word. We walk, we run, we soar. Our God is always with us, all because of Jesus.
Dear Lord, help us focus solely on you and the promises you make to us in your Word. Drive complaints far from our lips, and fix our eyes on Jesus. In your name we pray. Amen.
Alex Brown is the marketing and content copywriter at Northwestern Publishing House. He has his Master of Divinity degree from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary and enjoys reading, writing, and spending time in God’s creation.