Grumpy and Crotchety!

Just the other day, I watched a humorous interview with a preteen. This occurred on an afternoon entertainment news program. What caught my attention in this brief and show-ending feature was that this youth was explaining her bad attitude while riding in the passenger seat of the family car. She was speaking to one of her parents as she made this adult-like excuse, “I’ve been crotchety since I was nine!” 

Image: freepik.com

I have enjoyed watching the Grumpy Old Men movies (1993, 1995) several times. The original film featured three of my favorite actors: Walter Matthau, Jack Lemmon, and Ann-Margret, It’s a story of two men, Max Goldman and John Gustafson who are neighbors and lifelong friends that find themselves competing for the affections of a beautiful woman,  Ariel Truax, who lived across the street from both men, Matthau and Lemmon with deadpan humor do a masterful job of bringing their characters to life in an uproariously funny and absurd way!

I’ve had my own grumpy moments that were certainly not fun or entertaining. I regret that just the other day, I felt like I had to push back on a scheduling person at a local eye care center. While it was the second time they had messed up our appointment, the young man apologized and then worked to correct the misunderstanding. I admit that my crotchetiness in that moment wasn’t compatible with my desire to be an encourager, but I must confess that I do have my moments.

The Bible has plenty to say about our attitudes. Jesus frequently spoke about what is in our hearts and how this impacts our actions and speech. He said, “For whatever is in your heart determines what you say. A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart.” (Matthew 12:34-35, NLT).

Tracie Miles, author of Unsinkable Faith, God-Filled Strategies to Transform the Way You Think, Feel, and Live. offered this wise perspective in one of her blog posts, “Our attitudes are an outward display of what’s taking place in our hearts. When our hearts focus in the right place, our attitudes will, too.” Then Miles advised, “The only thing we have to lose by choosing a positive attitude is a negative one.” That’s good counsel!

Everyone who knows me well, knows that I am “patience challenged!” I am gratefully blessed though to be married to a sweet and very patient wife who tries to keep me balanced in my attitude. What I do know is that everyone could do a lot better in life’s trying situations by applying these simple imperatives, “Don’t be grumpy! Don’t be crotchety! But do be like Jesus!” I’m prayerfully working on that application! Would you join me?

Mike Keppler, retired pastor,
active churchman and
doting grandparent.
Contact: drmjkeppler@gmail.com
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