Day 10: Refrain from Grumbling, Embrace Hospitality

Good Morning My Friends! As we begin our tenth day of our 40-day journey of living intentionally, let’s put on our welcoming hats and smiles.

Grumbling vs. Hospitality

When we grumble, what we’re really doing is muttering our discontent about something. We’re dissatisfied with our circumstances and then our attitude is characterized by anger and ungraciousness. When we’re hospitable, well, we’re spreading happiness!

Consequences of Grumbling

We only need to look at the story of Israelites’ journey out of Egypt into the desert on their way to the promise land to see the consequences of grumbling.

It didn’t take them long either to start grumbling. Moses no more than led them out of slavery, and they began their muttering. Three days of freedom after 400 years of slavery and already they were discontent bellyachers!

The Israelites grumbled! They grumbled in their tents, in the open, as a collective community. They grumbled everywhere and a lot!

They grumbled against Moses and Aaron, all their leaders, and God Himself.

Their grumblings hurt too. Can you imagine how this impacted Moses to have to listen to all their grumbling? I can. I imagine he felt aggravated, saddened, and discouraged at times. Here he was doing all he could to help free them from slavery and lead them to a beautiful place to live and all they could do was whine!

The Israelites grumbled so much and for so long, they truly tested the Lord’s patience.

For 40 years God was patient with them. If you want a quick review of all their grumbling and God’s mercy on them, read Psalm 106. Wow! God is longsuffering for sure.

But even God can tire of our grumbling.

Rather than allow these grumblers to enter the promise land, He changed His mind.

“In this wilderness your bodies will fall—every one of you twenty years old or more who was counted in the census and who has grumbled against me” (Numbers 14:29, NIV)

Yikes! All those grumblers did not even get to enter the beautiful new home that God had waiting for them.

Makes me stop and think today. I know God has good plans for me and some really awesome things waiting for me. I don’t want to be like the Israelites and not get to receive the beautiful gifts God has waiting for me. Do you?

 ^“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11, NIV).

However, we risk the same consequence as the Israelites if we keep grumbling. We will be judged:

“Don’t grumble against one another, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door” (James 5:9, NIV).

So what would God like us to do instead of grumbling?

Offer Hospitality

God wants us to offer hospitality:

 “Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling” (1 Peter 4:9, NIV)

He wants us to be generous and share with others:

“be generous and willing to share” (1 Timothy 6:18, NIV).

“Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality” (Romans, 12:13, NIV).

Finally, and this is super cool. Be friendly, gracious, and generous to strangers because you just never know who they really might be. God may be testing you to see how hospitable you are by sending His angels directly to you as a stranger.

“Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it” (Hebrews 13:2, NIV).

Remember this:

“Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously” (2 Corinthians 9:6, NIV).

So whatever you give will come back to you:  both grumbling and hospitality. I know because I’ve lived it both ways.

Today, let’s be hospitable with one another rather than grumbling. Let’s choose to intentionally share with and be generous to others.

Practical Application

Here’s a few ideas to get you started today:

• When driving, slow down and let someone into your lane with happiness.
• When someone comes into your office, greet them with a welcoming smile.
• When standing in line at the store, let gracious and patient with the cashier.
• When teaching a child how to do something for the tenth time, encourage him or her.
• When pressed with a deadline of any sort, stay calm.

Should a stranger approach you today and ask for directions, graciously provide instructions. This could just be an angel in disguise.

Just for Today

Refrain from Grumbling. Embrace Hospitality!