What Do You Sound Like? (Friday Devotional)

 

Do everything without grumbling or arguing…So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.

- Philippians 2:14, 18

Buzz. Click. Clang. Fizz. Groan. Hiccup. Hiss. Rattle. Rip. Sputter.

All these words have something in common: they are onomatopoeias, words whose names sound like the noises they describe. English has more than 100 such words—from argh to ugh, boom to zoom. Some make us smile just to see them in print—think achoo or belch—while others have a more unpleasant feel in our mouths, like blurt or snarl.

To this latter category you can add the word ‘grumble.’ One of its definitions, “to make a low rumbling sound,” the way thunder does when a storm is gathering, fits the word’s sound perfectly. But so too does its primary definition, “to complain about something in a bad-tempered way.” While complaining can sometimes be louder and higher-pitched—think of that other onomatopoeia, ‘whine’—often it’s more like an undercurrent, something soft and in the background, inescapable and unpleasant.

There should always be a place for constructive criticism in our lives—if we don’t want to stagnate, then we need to be seeking ways to do better. But while we ought to welcome helpful suggestions offered in the pursuit of sanctification, the Bible tells us we need not tolerate and should not engage in the kind of complaining that tears down without building back up, that finds nothing but problems and doesn’t bother to seek solutions. That’s just grumbling—and far from helping, it’s just downright unpleasant.

One of the characteristics that set the early Christians apart from the world was the joy they constantly exhibited, even in the face of tremendous difficulty. Their hope was not found in worldly figures—not in financial statements or attendance figures or election results—but in the good news that Christ is risen, the knowledge that by grace and through faith their eternal future was assured. Whatever this world threw at them, their attitude was always the same: Jesus is Lord, so what do I have to complain about?

The world isn’t any simpler today than it was then—some aspects of life are easier, others far harder. So if you’re looking to the world for your hope, you’ll find plenty to worry and stress and complain about. But if Jesus is your Lord, you can rejoice and be glad, for you have a hope that will endure far longer than any of life’s cares and concerns. With every word you speak, whether an expression of joy or a grumble, you are bearing witness to what you believe—so what do you sound like?