“Voice of doom!”
That’s what my mama, bless her heart, used to say when she realized she was being negative and putting the worst, complaining slant on something!
She was looking on the side of failure, disaster, trouble and bad outcomes.
Fortunately, she was usually a positive person and the “voice of doom” only came out occasionally. But it was powerful!
What happens when we are negative, complain and expect ruinous results? According to “invst.com,” complaining does damaging things to us.
Some folks are constant complainers. Do you know one? It seems they complain all the time, or have something negative to say. Instead of “It’s a wonderful Friday,” they may say, “It’s so cold and I’m sure it will storm!”
The more we complain, the easier it is to complain! Our brains like to make patterns of things we think about to make it easier to connect. Negative patterns are developed in our neurons as they “branch out and connect to each other” (invst.com). The Bible says, “as a man thinks, so is he.” Some even think that we damage our brains in areas we use for intelligent thought and problem solving by constant negativity.
It is thought that complaining raises our cortisol levels, the stress hormone that causes blood pressure and blood sugar to rise. What does that cause; we all know: anxiety, difficulty sleeping, head-aches, gaining weight, impaired immune system ... possibly leading to diseases like diabetes, heart disease, strokes or obesity.
A part of the problem?
Negativity attracts negativity. We tend to take on the mood or attitude of those around us. We complain with others, and that leads to others who complain like we do!
In the same way, positivity attracts positive people! The Bible speaks about our thoughts and being positive. Not a Pollyanna kind of denial of reality, or rose-colored glasses, but a mature, positive outlook aware of other possibilities.
I think positivity and thankfulness go hand in hand. Did you ever give your child a gift and they complained about something about it? How did you feel? Like you got a slap in the face? Well, when we complain and whine, we are insulting God who gives us life and is in control of all.
I Thessalonians 5:18 says, “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” Thanking God is a way to worship Him, acknowledge Him and appreciate Him.
We have to train our thoughts. We have to steer away from complaining and grumbling (Israelites in desert?) and aim for gratitude.
Thanking God keeps us humble! We recognize that what we do is through God! Thanking God can keep us from getting all wadded up in anxiety!
Philippians 4:6 tells us to “not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”
He will take care of it!
