no more complaining!

my dad once said that i have a tendency toward melancholy. although this tendency is not nearly as strong as it was at the time he said this, it's definitely still there.

one manifestation of this tendency is complaining. it is something i do well. very well. i seem to see the negative in situations much more often than the positive.

for example (this happens all the time): when joel presents two potential solutions to a dilemma, i will immediately point out the negative in both and be all pouty about it. i know that is something that irks my husband. it does nothing to help the situation. joel, unlike me, is very good at seeing the positive in things; this is one of his traits that first drew me to him. thank God he balances me out in this way!

what got me thinking about all this in the first place was this post from blog mayes in manhattan. craig mayes used to teach at the church i grew up in, and is now the pastor at a sweet church in new york city called communitas. his blogs are always very authentic and inspiring; they're the next best thing to hearing him speak, which i miss tremendously.

so, back to that post. craig makes some great points, like:

When I complain it reveals that I believe that things should be different than they are (for me), and when they are not to my liking, it is intolerable.

which, when you think about it, is really quite ridiculous. who are we to feel such a sense of entitlement, anyway? and what good does complaining do? it is certainly how God intends for us to live.

The apostle Paul wrote that we should do all things without complaining… (Phil 2:14)

so, that being said, i have decided to stop complaining. haha, i just made that sound really easy.

i've already asked joel to help me with this, and let me tell you, he does not miss a thing! i know that my tendency to complain, complain, complain is conquerable, but it is definitely going to take a lot of mental effort. thank God i have joel to encourage me! i think this could be a potentially life-altering process; i'm hoping it will give me a renewed perspective on life.

so if you notice any complaining in my future posts, please complain back :)