When you’re tempted to complain, remember Moses and his people
By Dean Collins
It takes rabble to know rabble. You were probably a school-age child when you first heard the idea, although probably not in those exact words. I suspect some angry or jealous kid on the playground said it to you this way: “It takes one to know one.” Maybe you pointed out some character flaw or undesirable trait in another person, and with the speed of lightning they verbally struck back. The meaning, of course, is that in order to recognize a flaw we must also have the flaw.
You may have never used the word rabble in a sentence. I know I haven’t. Webster’s definition of rabble is a disorderly and disorganized mob or crowd of people. In Numbers 11, where the word appears in today’s text, hundreds of thousands were traveling through the wilderness to the Promised Land. In a crowd that size there would likely have been different groups of rabble that at any given moment might start complaining.
The thing about complaining is that it tends to ebb and flow through groups of people. Once a few start complaining, it spreads, and before you know it, complaining can turn to discouragement and dissatisfaction and ultimately lead to destruction. It’s hard to stay on mission while complaining.
Many complainers
I think I remember that we read about people complaining in the Exodus story 14 times . Exodus 5 is the first occurrence. The complaint was that because Moses told Pharaoh to let the Israelites go, Pharaoh ignored Moses and made their suffering more intense. The result was that Pharaoh now demanded the same amount of bricks to be made without the straw that had been provided before. We can certainly understand the complaint the Israelites made against Moses and Aaron. Things were already hard enough, and now the work just got harder.
I may have miscounted but by the time we get to Numbers 11, it’s the sixth or seventh time the Israelites complained. I am guessing there were plenty of people complaining for the complaints to make it into the record—whole families, maybe whole tribes. God had used Moses to get the people out of Egypt, but they were not satisfied with the conditions of the journey nor the leadership of Moses.
Big picture
It is easy for us to read about the journey in the wilderness and think that we would have done a better job trusting God, trusting his leader Moses, and being grateful for what God was providing on the way to the Promised Land. But I must admit that sometimes I have become a part of the rabble with my complaints when things didn’t go right, go fast, or go easy enough.
Leadership is difficult. And so is follower-ship. When leading or following in times of stress or difficulty, we may easily forget the big picture and focus on the many frustrations. Having adequate food and water qualifies as a big thing. But in the exodus journey, God did provide adequate food and water. The complaints were not about the amounts but about the preferred menu selections.
It takes a complainer to know one. And I know myself. You will have to do your own self-examination. How often are we willing to admit that if and when we complain about something, the issue is more about our preferences than about our needs?
God hears
By the way, do we, like our ancient spiritual ancestors, forget that any complaining we do is in earshot of the Lord? The Lord not only knows our hearts, he also hears our words and knows our agendas. Wouldn’t it be healthier to go directly to the Lord with our complaints than to poison those around us? God is able to hear our complaining. When we are willing to take our frustrations to him in prayer, we might be surprised how much clarification we will get. Time in the Word and time in prayer will often clarify our thinking. The act of reexamining need versus want is not as hard as we sometimes make it out to be.
There is nothing wrong with taking our complaint or concern to a coworker, a boss, a family member, or a committee member. It is far better to express our complaints and give another person an opportunity to understand or respond. It’s entirely different to complain about someone or something when they may not even know they have done anything that is hurting or frustrating you. I suspect the complaints that wore Moses out were the combination of complaining behind his back and to his face that finally got to him. And then there is the reality that Moses was simply trying to do what God told him to do. He didn't have another agenda.
God is available
Sometimes we complain about things that are actually out of the control of the person we’re talking to. Again, reflection and prayer about a given situation may help us sort through what is reasonable to expect from our boss, our spouse, our friends, and our employer.
The psalmist understood what the Israelites and you and I often forget. God is the one who both loves us and is able to do the most about changing our situation. Psalm 55 says this: “But I call to God, and the Lord will save me. Evening and morning and at noon I utter my complaint and moan, and he hears my voice.”
Evening and morning and even at lunchtime God is available and ready to hear every complaint. He is never out of touch. We can bring every burden and every complaint to God. He will provide for our needs. He will help us with our perspective. And he will change our hearts when we are wrong. He will never be vindictive. His grace and mercy flow freely.
I doubt that any of us want to be known as complainers. Wouldn’t you rather be known as a servant-leader who is ready to help others and is available to God to be used to make a difference for those in need?
Your time with God’s Word
Numbers 11:1-6, 10-15; Psalm 55:16-19, 22-23 ESV
Photo by Joe Yates on Unsplash
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