Grateful vs Grumble

James 5:9 - Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged, behold, the Judge is standing at the door.

I have shared how most of the devotionals I write come out of what the Lord is saying to me personally during my prayer time. It is funny how often many of you will reach out and say how the Lord is speaking to you personally through that message. I think it is because most of us are going through similar challenges in our lives. We aren't so different after all. We have much more in common than what we realize.

Today's devotional is not going to be any different. In fact, this scripture above is what the Lord was convicting me about this morning in my prayer time. I wanted to share it with you today.

Complaining....the Lord said to me this morning how I am like the Israelites when God broke them out of the bondage of slavery in Egypt. He led them through the wilderness and provided their food from heaven, brought fresh water from rocks, a flock of quail for meat and yet they complained. Nothing was ever enough. He turned bitter water into fresh water and led them to the promised land overflowing with all the food and goodness they could ever have imagined. Yet they did not trust Him to lead them into the promised land to possess it.

I had to repent and ask the Lord to forgive me. I find myself getting distracted often by all that is wrong in the world and the imperfections of people that I forget the bondage the Lord rescued me from. We cannot allow ourselves to be distracted by what could be better that we miss out on all the goodness and blessings right in front of us. The Lord cautioned me this morning, that as easily as He has placed His hand of favor on me, He can remove His hand of favor from me.

If this has been you, I urge you to just ask the Lord to forgive you and quicken your spirit when your mouth begins complaining. This Memorial Day, let us give thanks for those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our freedoms and those who continue to serve our great country. We have our own sets of problems here in the USA, but we also live in the greatest country in the world, and we have so much to be grateful about.

God bless you,

Nancy