Do you want some cheese?

Have you ever been asked, do you want some cheese with that whine?  Unfortunately, I have.  Yes, while I do not drink fine wine, I am quite a fine whiner!  It is hard to admit, but the more I look at my day to day life, I feel like I am becoming a complainer and yes, even a whiner.  I try not my hardest not to whine and complain to others, but to my husband, I fear I am becoming a whiner.  I whine about my day, my pains, and can have a nice long pitty party with myself as the star.  I can go on and on about what went wrong that day, who disobeyed, who didn't listen, my headaches, and etc. etc. etc.

But, it stops now.  I am giving up whining.  I am giving up complaining.  I am looking forward to each day as a wonderful gift from God.  I do not want to raise complainers and whiners, and therefore, cannot be one myself.

I am an only child, and maybe some of my whine stems from those years of getting all the attention.  Every time I tell my oldest daughter to stop whining, I can still hear my mother say it to me.  What makes us whine and complain?  What can we do to combat the habit?

We all have some complaints in our life.  There are stories of complainers in the Bible, like the Israelites after being rescued from captivity and even Jeremiah one of the major prophets was sited for complaining.  What can we do as whiney complainers, to put a new song in our heart?

In Proverbs 29 we find a verse that can help us keep our complaints quieted.  Verse 11 says, "A fool uttereth all his mind: but a wise man keepeth it in till afterward."  The translation for "uttereth" is "vents all his feelings" and "keepeth" is "holds it back", so the verse would read, "A fool vents all his feelings: but a wise man holds it back."

Yes, you might have a day when nothing is going right.  You want to tell the world so somebody will feel sorry for you.  It would be nice to have a pat on the back and be told it's all going to be ok.  But, instead of bringing someone else down, what would happen if we "hold it back" and ask the Lord to intervene.  Tell Him sincerely through prayer, what our problems are.  He is there to help, comfort, and listen. He can put a new song in our hearts, songs of gratitude, forgiveness and love.

Today's Verse
"Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers."  Eph 4:29

I know I have to tell my husband about my day, but instead of whining, my hope is to simply state the facts and together we can prayerfully ask for help with the negative aspects.  We are all going to throw a pitty party now and again, but make sure it's not everyday.  Make sure others do not see you as a whiner or complainer, but as a joyful person with God's light shining through.  You want to build those around you up with edifying words, not tear them down with your negativity.

My youngest daughter is tough as nails.  She gets hurt and she may cry for a millisecond, but she is right back up running and playing again.  While holding her this morning after a little fall, I saw she had a splinter in her finger.  It was red and irritated, so it must have been there this weekend.  She never complained.  She never whined.  She was tough.  My prayer is she remains tough, and maybe her toughness will rub off on me and her big sis.

I am pledging to give up complaining and whining for the week.  It is going well so far, but I really haven't talked to anyone older than four and a half!  I want to only be asked if I would like some cheese when I am dining at Olive Garden!



On a side note...
I love to cook and am working to add some recipe tabs to the page.  With the fall season here, that is when I get geared up for holiday cooking.  I already made a new pumpkin bread recipe this weekend that I will share.  My husband has proclaimed me the "Leftover Queen", and I would love to share some of those ideas as well.  Look for the upcoming additions soon!