From The Pastor’s Pen – By Brian Horrobin
Sometimes the simplest things can have the greatest impact.
We often overlook simple, clear advice because we are looking for something more profound.
However, simple can also mean powerful.
Take the words of advice from the apostle Paul, for instance, which he gave to the church at Philippi in Philippians 2:14: “Do everything without complaining or arguing.”
Sounds simple enough, doesn’t it?
Yet if executed, it can accomplish a lot.
The word “everything” appears first in the original Greek, which means that this word is the one that is most emphasized.
We can usually keep ourselves from complaining and arguing in some things, but Scripture tells us to do this in everything.
The word for complaining means to murmur, gossip, and find fault.
Are you guilty of doing this?
Whining is the vernacular of so many in our world today, but we must resist the temptation to do it.
The other word, “arguing”, has the sense of always questioning something or someone.
We are not talking about giving in to naivety here.
This trait is one where a person constantly carries an air of skepticism and looks for an argument instead of trying to learn from others.
These two issues were dividing this wonderful church and Paul knew that something had to be said.
So, it’s not earth-shattering advice, but it is something that can reap huge dividends.
We are at the start of another new week and no doubt there will a number of opportunities for us to put this advice into practice.
So, let’s do exactly that!
