whining vs. thankfulness

whining seems to have wriggled its way into my daily words. small things seem easy to complain about, even when i know i should be grateful. i rushed around to get dinner ready and in the fridge before i left for my afternoon shift at work, and when i got home, devin had also started cooking dinner. why on earth would my first thought be "noooo, you're making dinner, too?! but i already worked hard to cook something!" instead of "wow, thanks! you're so thoughtful, and now we have dinner for tomorrow night!" (although i'm not sure i can bring myself to eat seasoned pasta and pork when friday nights lend themselves so well to pizza).

or my internal dialogue of whining about whether or not to go to the christian group on campus tonight--if we still went to my church (instead of the "middle ground" congregation we decided on as a couple) i wouldn't be so desperate for fellowship...and i don't really know anyone at this group yet...

my usual dissatisfaction comes with a comparison of my current school to the one i left in massachussetts: the teachers don't present the values that i hold dear, i would have someone to sit with in class if i hadn't left my friends...

so here's to praying for a heart of contentment and gratitude for all that God's done for me, instead of listing the trivial things that i've started grumbling about. 


I will give thanks to the LORD because of his righteousness; I will sing the praises of the name of the LORD Most High.

2 comments

  1. Hey Julie, thanks for your comment on my blog about your experiences with community! It was really helpful to read. I guess it's all just part of getting married and forging a new trail, huh? I'm glad to hear that you had some couples introduce themselves to you at your new church! And I'm happy to report that we made some good connections at a church that we just tried too :) We haven't settled in a church yet, but I think I'm starting to get over my whole not-branching-out thing and embracing the idea of new community. Thanks for your encouragement. Where are you guys living? Because I think I read on your blog that you're at Temple, and we live near Philly too!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. glad my meager "community-findin' is hard" was encouraging ;) i'm actually at arcadia university, which is just outside philly,(although i've posted about visiting my friend at temple). do you like living semi-near the city? and have you decided on a church to go to, or are you still looking?

      Delete