Dear Young Christian:
When I was a young person I often heard it said, It is wrong to murmur, but not wrong to groan.
The children of Israel did a lot of murmuring. In fact, their history in the wilderness is summed up when it says, “They believed not His word: but murmured in their tents, and hearkened not unto the voice of the Lord” (Psalm 106:24-25). To murmur is really to blame God, whether directly or indirectly. When the Israelites spoke against Moses, or anyone else, they were really blaming the Lord.
However, we do groan. “The whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also” (Romans 8:22-23). To groan is to feel the effects that sin has brought into the world. We read of the Lord Jesus, “He groaned in the spirit, and was troubled” (John 11:33).
So you can groan this week, but be careful not to murmur. Take everything as from the Lord, and Rejoice in Him.
Your Christian Friend,
Jim Hyland
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