Complaining About Complainers

These are great days to live in Chicago if you love being a critic or complainer. There were high expectations for our beloved Chicago Bears who, midway through the season, have been a huge disappointment. Like people all over the country, Chicagoans endured months of negative political campaign ads leading up to the November elections that convinced us that all candidates for political office are untrustworthy and incompetent. And, to complete a sort of perfect storm of current events to complain about, the early signs are that we may have to endure a winter that will compete with last year’s polar vortex-driven season of seemingly endless snow and cold. 

I realize that my comments here are yet another example about the culture of complaining that seems to have become the standard for our society. I’m complaining about complaining! It’s hard not to get sucked into the habit of complaining with great regularity. I find myself expressing displeasure with all sorts of things – the weather, politicians, sports teams, church politics, taxes, getting old, food prices, people who drive too slow (or too fast), etc.  

A well-known on-air personality at a Chicago radio station has a weekly segment on his show called “the bright side of life.” During this part of his time on the air, people call in and describe something positive and encouraging they saw or experienced during the past week. I always enjoy listening to this. It provides a needed antidote to the complaints that are so commonly shared on talk radio and in other media.  

I get the same lift from the steady flow of “bright side of life” stories of new ministries that Wheat Ridge Ministries is privileged to help seed. Here are two examples:

Club 100 Charities was started by a group of retired businessmen and women in Jupiter, Florida, who wanted to use their talents and experience to make a positive difference in their community. Many of these people are members of Holy Spirit Lutheran Church in Juno Beach. In partnership with and on the property of a Haitian Christian church in Lake Park, they have developed a community center for children and families from local underserved neighborhoods, with services ranging from after-school tutoring and family counseling to sports programs, recreational activities and a food and clothing bank. When I attended the “grand opening” of this center recently, I was amazed by the variety of organizations committed to working together to make this program a success, including the local police department, teachers and students from schools and universities, the town’s mayor and the local chamber of commerce, professional athletes, and a variety of other generous volunteers. I know it’s become an over-used phrase, but I really felt like I was seeing a great example of “it takes a village to raise a child.”  

I was interviewed recently by a radio station in Detroit, Michigan, and was able to share Wheat Ridge Ministries’ role in another exciting and impactful new ministry. It was initiated by Grace in Action, a Lutheran church located in southwest Detroit. I have yet to visit this project in person, but two of our staff members are very excited about what they have seen there. The young leaders of this church have established a non-profit organization called Grace in Action Collectives that exists to help teens in their community gain leadership skills, vocational training, and job experience by creating revenue-producing businesses that provide services for the community. I’m particularly pleased that Wheat Ridge has been able to assist Grace in Action not only through a traditional seed grant, but also through our WeRaise crowdfunding site. Grace in Action raised over $21,000 on WeRaise to purchase a building to house the Collectives. 

Of course, complaining is nothing new. People have complained about each other, their circumstances, and their problems for a long time – think about Adam and Eve, the children of Israel wandering in the wilderness, the prophets and the disciples, just to name a few. As we enter the season of Advent, our complaints are another sign of a world in need of a Savior. 

Thankfully, there are also countless reminders (when I actually take time to look around) that while God didn’t create us to be complainers, God loves us even when we do. Fortunately, God did create us with a desire for service, community, care, kindness and generosity. Wonderful ministries such as Club 100’s Community Center and the Grace in Action Collectives remind me that it is possible to stop the complaining and fault-finding and focus instead on serving others with whom we share a common bond as recipients of God’s love made manifest in the birth of the Christ child.

So, away with the complaints and in with the hosannas! Oh come, let us adore Him, Christ the Lord!