David complained about his context but remembered God’s goodness. In Psalm 142, he is weak and exhausted and isolated. The walls of the cave feel like they are closing in on him as he voices his complaint to the Lord. Yet at the end of the Psalm he affirms that God is his shelter and he rejoices that the Lord deals generously with him. The Israelites complained very differently.

I was working on a message at home and Evie, my youngest, came and sat next to me and saw on the document “How to complain to God.” Her response was like many responses, “What! That’s crazy! Can you do that?” Though her complaints are not as weighty as the anguish among many in this season, 2020 has not been what she hoped it would be. “Do you think God wants you to hide how you are feeling? Do you think God wants you to stuff down your struggles?” I assured her the Lord does not want her to stuff down her struggles, her complaints in this season. When we don’t bring our struggles to God, we show that we think His love is conditional – that must fix ourselves before we can come to Him.

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