​The Early Church in the Bible was confronted with a relationship hindering, unity busting issue in its congregations: Christians complaining against Christians.
 
Sad to say, it is no different today. Churches are packed with complaining Christians.
 
Everything from the length of the Pastor’s sermon, his personal style, his family’s lifestyle, the worship team’s performance, ministry workers care for children, to campus décor, expenditure of God’s funds, fellow church members apparel, and on and on and on…. all are subject to subjective judgment by self-righteous, sanctimonious believers who take upon themselves the mantle of judge, jury and verdict.
 
The word complain means groan, murmur or bear a grudge. Ouch! Do we really realize what we are doing when we complain against a brother? I think not. For if we did, I think we would think twice before murmuring against our brothers and sisters in Christ.
 
You and I should be deeply ashamed of ourselves. I will admit I have done my share of complaining over the years. I am not proud of my murmuring and complaining. But goodness gracious, how much damage have I, and maybe you, inflicted on our relationships with fellow believers in Christ because we have complained against them?
 
I have concluded there is no biblical justification for me passing judgment on any Christian brother by complaining about them.
 
James had a word from God for the Christians in his day and ours. It is important that you and I heed his admonition.
 
“Do not complain, brethren, against one another, that you yourselves may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing right at the door.” James 5:9
 
James might as well as said, let me be perfectly clear, DO NOT COMPLAIN AGAINST ONE OTHER.” Complaining and murmuring was and is out of bounds according to God’s Word.
 
Brothers, do not complain against your brothers. Why? Because when you do, you will be judged. The Judge, God Almighty, the Judge of all judges, will pass judgment on you for passing judgment on others. Note “the Judge is standing right at the door.” The Judge is Johnny on the spot! Right at the door. Listening to our words.
 
Criticizing, complaining, murmuring, gossiping, griping, groaning and moaning against one another is an unholy scourge and demonic curse in the church. Complaining is immature at best, sinful at the worst.
 
James tells us in chapter 3, verse 17 “Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do, and does not do it, to him it is sin.” We know as Bible-believing Christians to complain against our brothers is not right. So, if we do it, according to God’s Word, it is sin. Pure and simple. It is sin because we are judging one another and we are commanded not to judge each other. (Matthew 7:1-5).
 
How many of our brothers and sisters have been hurt and disheartened by complaining? How many churches have been torn apart by strife and division because of complainers? How many pastors have been discouraged and burned out having to deal with constant criticism from the people they serve?
 
News Bulletin: Criticizing and complaining is not a spiritual gift.
 
Ten Simple Steps To Cease Complaining
 
            1. Do you like it when others complain against you? Probably not.
            2. Take your complaint to God and pray for your brother.
            3. Forgive your brother for all offense against you.
            4. Control your tongue. Resist the fleshly temptation to murmur against a       `                      Christian. (James 3:1-12).
            5. Never, never tear down your fellow Christians. Always, always build them up.
            6. Speak highly of your brother or sister in the presence of others.
            7. Check your motivation. Why are you complaining against a brother?
            8. Is it Christ-like to complain against fellow Christians?
9. Stop and think. What will my complaining against a brother or sister do to him/her, the body of Christ, and my witness to an unbelieving world?
            10. Remember:  you are accountable to God for your treatment of your brother.
 
Think with me for a moment. If Christians stopped complaining against one another:
 

• The devil would have one less opportunity to divide the body of Christ.
• Strife, unity and division in the body of Christ would expire.
• Believers would have clear consciences toward one another.
• Energy given to complaining would be directed to soul-winning.
• The world would be attracted, not repelled, by Christians and the church.
• The Lord would be pleased with how we treat one another.

 
Are you a complaining Christian? Do you have such a critical attitude toward others that you hardly realize that you complain against your fellow Christians? Would those who know you best say you are infected with a complaining spirit?
 
Is there someone you need to go to with a humble heart and ask for forgiveness for complaining against them? If so, go.
 
Maybe, just maybe, spiritual revival and renewal would come to the church of the Lord Jesus Christ if we stopped complaining against our brothers and sisters in Christ.
 
Just a thought.
             
“And so, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against another, just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. And beyond all these things, put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity.”                                                                                 Colossians 3:12-14
 
“Do not judge lest you be judged. For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. And why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, “Let me take the speck out of your eye” and behold, the log is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye? Jesus, Matthew 7:1-5
 
A Word For Your Week: Stop judging other Christians by complaining about them.

​How you ever felt like no one cares about you?
 
I have been there, and it is a scary place to be.
 
The Psalmist David was passing through a deep, dismally dark, depressing valley in his life. Psalm 142:3-4 reveals the depth of his despair: “When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, Thou didst know my path. There is no escape for me, there is no one who regards me, no one cares for my soul.” Psalm 142:3-4
 
Overwhelmed in his spirit by circumstances beyond his control, David knew God was watching out for him. But his human heart cried out for someone besides God to care for him in his time of desperate need.
 
Real life enemies had surrounded him. Alone and hemmed in, he felt lonely. David could not find a way of escape from the intense, spirit-crushing pressure he was under. Feeling frustrated that his situation was bigger than his ability to cope with by himself, he called out, wondering if anyone cared for his soul.
 
 David needed a friend to care about what he cared about.
 
My friend, have you ever felt overwhelmed by life? Have you ever wondered if anyone cared about your soul…what you think, what you feel, what you need?
 
Despite our 21st century explosion of social networking technology, in every survey, Americans rank LONELINESS at the top of the list of their personal concerns. People can be in a huge crowd and feel desperately alone, unnoticed and uncared for.
 
Our technological toys are impressive and serve a purpose in our society. Admittedly, I do not know how to use most of them. Ask my family. Technology is not my gift!
 
For all the good it does, technology can leave many people feeling alone, isolated and wondering if anyone really cares about them.
 
 FaceBook is not face to face. Tweeting is not meeting with someone. Instagram is not spending quality time with another person. MySpace is not sharing mutual space. Cell phones may connect us with an ear and a voice but not always with a heart. Blogging is not jogging with someone down life’s trail sharing who we are and what our life is all about. Texting is not getting next to someone and letting them know that someone cares about them.
 
People, like you and me, and everyone we know, want someone(s) to genuinely care about our lives. We think we may be in touch with people more than ever. But I believe many people feel out of touch and wonder if anyone cares for their soul.
 
“No one cares for my soul.” Say this phrase a few times aloud and let the despair of such a statement sink deep into your soul. Oh my! No one should be left alone to feel that way. No one that you and I know. No one that God may direct us to. As Christians, we are the embodiment of Christ’s love and care for people. If anyone should be caring for people who think no one cares, it is us.
 
So, let us start to care and share God’s love with someone who thinks no one cares. How about a simple acrostic to get us started?
 
Connect with the person you care about. Touch base. Especially if you have not heard from them for awhile. Make that call. Set up an appointment to meet. Turn off your cell phone when you get together. Give them your sincere, undivided attention. Listen. Respond with an understanding heart and an appropriate human touch.
 
Assist them with their situation. Focus on their life. Find out what they need. Serve them. Offer to help them with practical things that will relieve the pressure they feel. Do something for them that demonstrates that you really care. Go out of your way to do whatever they need you to do to communicate that you care for their soul.
 
Renew your personal relationship. Catch up on each other’s lives. Resolve to keep your friendship relationship up to date. Make regular contact. Inquire how they are doing. Show interest in what interests them. Be honest and open. Gently but purposefully push their buttons once in a while to find out what is going on with them. Let them know that they matter to you.
 
Encourage your friend to call upon you when they need to. Encourage this by demonstrating to them that you will respond. Assure them you will be there anytime, any where, for any reason. You will not leave them alone. You can be counted on to show up when they throw up their hands in frustration.
 
Rubber meets the road: Who do you know that is struggling with whether anyone cares for them or not? If you are award of their emotional despair, are you praying for them? Have you contacted them? Are you willing to spend time with them on their turf? Are you willing to listen to them and show them the love and compassion of the Lord?
 
Would it not be wonderful if we knew that there was no one in our circle of relationships that felt like no one cared for their soul?
 
You and I can make that happen by caring for someone today in Jesus’ name!
 
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”                                                                                 John 13:14-15
 
A Word For Your Week: Take care to care for someone who needs to know you care.

​Today I share with you an outstanding devotion by Oswald Chambers in His devotional “My Utmost For His Highest” for August 31.
It is simply, incredibly powerful and worth meditating upon. I will make a few personal comments and share some insights after you read it.
“That My joy may remain in you, and that you joy might be full.” John 15:11
“What was the joy that Jesus had? It is an insult to use the word happiness in connection with Jesus Christ. The joy of Jesus was the absolute self-surrender and self-sacrifice of Himself to His Father, the joy of doing that which the Father sent Him to do “I delight to do Thy will.” Jesus prayed that our joy might go on fulfilling itself until it was the same joy as His. Have I allowed Jesus Christ to introduce His joy to me?
The full flood of my life is not in bodily health, not in external happiness, not in seeing God’s work succeed, but in the perfect understanding of God, and in the communion with Him that Jesus Himself had.
The first thing that will hinder this joy is the captious irritation of thinking out circumstances. The cares of the world, said Jesus, will choke God’s word. Before we know where we are, we are caught up in the shows of things. All that God has done for us is the mere threshold; He wants to get us to the place where we will be His witnesses and proclaim who Jesus is.
Be rightly related to God. Find your joy there. Then out of you will flow rivers of living water. Be a center for Jesus Christ to pour living water through. Stop being self-conscious. Stop being a sanctified prig (archaic: one who offends or irritates) and live the life hid with Christ.
The life that is rightly related to God is as natural as breathing wherever it goes.
The lives that have been of most blessing to you are those who were unconscious of it.”  
Observations Concerning Chamber’s Thoughts

• Happiness is circumstantial. Joy is relational. The joy of Jesus makes it possible for His followers to walk by faith in peace as overcomers through all life circumstances.
• Focusing on circumstances brings unhappiness. Focusing on Jesus and His Word brings joy.
• Self-absorption with my circumstances cuts off the flow of Christ’s joy. As long as I dwell on my situation, Jesus’ joy will be distant until I surrender the circumstances to the Lord.
• Biblical joy flows from the heart of Jesus. I do not manufacture or stir up my own joy. My joy is His joy in me as I trust Him with my life.
• Jesus’s joy is constant as we maintain a faithful, self-denying, self-sacrificing, obedient relationship with Him.
• Jesus’ joy is to be shared, not hoarded. Christians are witnesses of Jesus joy that flows from a personal relationship with Him.
• Jesus’ joy does not have to be advertised, paraded or bragged about. It flows naturally if you will through you and me to touch other hearts of others.
• The purpose of Jesus’ joy: fill us and flow through us to win lost, joyless, searching souls to the Lord. Salvation produces joy unspeakable and full of glory for time and eternity!

I say again, joy has nothing to do with circumstances and everything to do with Jesus Christ. Your and my joy flows out of our relationship with the Lord. What is amazing and spiritually mind-boggling to me is that Jesus’ joy is Steve’s joy.
Jesus’ joy is not just for me. His joy is yours too if you have surrendered yourself to Him and you follow Him as your Lord and Savior.
His joy that is my joy and yours is to be shared with joyless people who do not know Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior.
My friends, joyless, unhappy, depressed, anxious, fearful people are everywhere. Sadly, many of them attend church. Most never darken the door of God’s house. Where will joyless folks find joy if they do not see the joy of the Lord in Christians?
How about you? Do people see the joy of the Lord on your face? In your attitude and words? Are you a joyful Christian that people who know you are blessed by and drawn to Jesus who you love and serve? A genuinely joyful countenance will get people’s attention!
My fellow follower of Jesus, please do not be a professing Christian whose face looks like you were baptized in lemon juice! A sourpuss never wins anyone to the Christ. Why in the world would a person looking for the answer to life hook up with someone who says they serve a risen Savior but looks and lives like the walking dead? Just saying.
Is Jesus’ joy your joy every day? Do people see Jesus’ joy in you?
“Then he said to them, “Go, eat of the fat; drink of the sweet, and send portions to him who has nothing prepared for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” Nehemiah 8:10
“Until now you have asked nothing in My name; ask and you will receive, that your joy may be made full.” John 16:24
“Therefore, you too now have sorrow; but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one takes your joy away from you.” John 16:22
A Word For Your Week: Jesus’ joy is our joy. Hallelujah!

​Whose pleasure are you living for…. yours or God’s?
Good question that needs answered.
The other day I read some comments by Oswald Chambers in his classic devotional My Utmost For His Highest that rocked my spiritual boat, shaking and re-awakening me regarding the purpose of my personal relationship with the Lord. It was one of those “Oh my goodness” moments!
“Am I spontaneously kind to God as I used to be, or am I only expecting God to be kind to me? Am I full of the little things that cheer His heart over me, or am I whimpering because things are going hardly for me? There is no joy in the soul that has forgotten what God prizes. It is a wonderful thing to think that Jesus Christ has need of me.” Give Me to drink.” How much kindness have I shown Him this past week? Have I been kind to His reputation in my life?”
I believe Chambers is saying something like this: When is the last time you or I gave Jesus a drink, showed Him kindness, served, blessed, pleased and delighted Him because of our lifestyle?
Paul addresses the Christian’s priority to please God in I Corinthians 1:9-10.
 “For this reason also since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you may walk in a manner worthy of the Lord to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.” I Corinthians 1:9-10
The Apostle of grace prayed for believers in Christ to walk, live their faith life, in such a way to please Jesus in everything they do. Christ followers are to bear fruit in every good work, to increase in knowledge of God and be filled with spiritual wisdom and understanding.
I believe that what Paul prays for you and me brings pleasure to God. Pleasing God brings Him glory!
God is pleased, takes pleasure in, is glorified when I worship and adore Him. When I praise Him. When I pray. When I serve, give and sacrifice. When I obey His Word. When I share His love with others. When I encourage and build up fellow Christians. When I stand up boldly before an unbelieving world, unashamed of His holy name.
This being so, what shook me up about Chamber’s statement? I do my best, with the Lord’s help to do the above Christian stuff. Granted, I am still learning, stretching and growing in grace and the knowledge of Jesus Christ. (II Peter 3:18).
Unfortunately, too often, confessing Christians. including Steve Roll, get caught up in things like personal image, reputation, whether we are noticed or not, popularity etc. Even our faith seems to somehow be about us and what Jesus does for us. Pretty shortsighted.
News bulletin: As Christians who follow Jesus Christ, life is not about us and what the Lord can do for us. It is about Jesus and how we can live for His pleasure and glory.
Let’s get gut level honest. So many of our petitions, prayers and requests of the Lord are flat out self- centered. About us, not Him. Do not get me wrong. The Lord invites us to ask, seek and knock concerning our needs. He joyfully moves heaven and earth to meet the sincere requests of His children.
But God is not an eternal blessing machine, a heavenly ATM, a cosmic errand boy or our spiritual guru that is at our beck and call twenty-four seven. Indeed, our Father in heaven is for us and works on our behalf according to the promises of His holy Word in the Bible.
But, and this is a BIG BUT, you and I are here for Him, not just Him for us.
How often do you or I think about how we can be a blessing to God today? How we can please Him? How may we bring joy, delight and pleasure to Him as His sons and daughters? How can we exalt His name and bring Him glory?
When, where and how does God get a little attention from us? An hour or two at church? Sporadic, hurried devotions? Empty prayer closet time? Too busy to serve and give in His name? Excuses and justification for living below God’s standards? OUCH!!!
Thinking about how little I think about pleasing Him in my life and bringing pleasure to my Lord and Savior stings. Hurts. Shames me. Motivates me to shift my focus from Steve to Jesus.
I am seriously asking myself is Steve living for Steve or is Steve living for Jesus? Am I living for my pleasure or His? My glory or God’s glory?
That is where I am at. It is a good place for making a course adjustment in my faith journey. I am refocusing on what God prizes. He prizes me as His son! He takes immense pleasure in me. I am treasured by my heavenly Father because of what Jesus did for me on the Cross.
Because my Father in heaven prizes me, I am going to work harder on prizing Him. Treasuring Him. Pleasing Him. Bringing pleasure to Him because He looks at me and says “There goes my son Steve. He makes my heart happy. I am so proud of him.”   
Why don’t you and I consider how to give Jesus a drink today? (See John 4:7-38).
 “And whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight.”: I John 3:22
A Word For Your Week: Live your life for the pleasure and glory of God.