Everyone has undoubtedly experienced disappointment. The job or promotion you didn't get, the house you wanted but didn't get, and also the behavior of friends or even your children can be very disappointing.
But you will also face disappointments in your faith life, such as the people who did not come to faith despite your efforts, or the healing that did not take place, or the financial breakthrough that did not come, or the friends you turned your back on, etc.
In all these situations, it is important that we do not allow ourselves to deviate from our course. By this I mean the path God has planned for us.
At 2Timothy 4 we read a number of things that happened to the apostle Paul that certainly disappointed him.
He begins by saying to Timothy in verse 9: "Come to me quickly, for Demas has left me; he has loved this world and Left for Tessalonica. Crescens went to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia. 11 Only Lucas stayed with me.
At verse 14 he continued by saying: "Alexander, the coppersmith, has done me much evil; the Lord will give him his due. 15 You too must beware of him; he has strongly opposed our proclamation.
16 In my first defense, no one stood by me; they all abandoned me. May they not be blamed.
Feeling alone with your beliefs is not a nice feeling, and yet we will experience it more and more, especially in these end times.
Last year I heard the Lord say: That the church will be challenged to take a stand in times of great turmoil. That clear lines will become visible as our convictions are challenged to the core.
What is our position? I believe God's Word is our foundation and Jesus is the cornerstone. Our convictions flow from God's Word. The question is: How far are we willing to go to hold to this?
Paul spoke of Demas who had forsaken him; and had loved the world.
The world beckons with its ideologies and philosophies. Society is changing and the church is seen as old-fashioned and uninteresting.
A disappointing development that has led many churches to reconsider their beliefs and adapt to the world.
This seems like a giant that is only getting bigger. He yells at us and demands that we give up and adapt. He even hijacks the rainbow, symbolizing God's grace and redemption for us, To represent the unnatural.
We will increasingly feel that we are going against the grain, and there will certainly be those who find it difficult to hold on to their beliefs.
The voices of the World will get louder and try to scare us like Goliath did, but God always has the last word. He is the one who determines the outcome of the battle!
Isaiah 54.17 "Every weapon that is wrought against you will avail nothing, and every tongue that rises up against you in judgment will pronounce you guilty. This is the hereditary possession of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is from me, saith the LORD."
We can let our disappointments grow like giants or we can intervene immediately and not let it get to that point at all.
David was just a little boy, but one with great faith! Our disappointments will not move the hand of God, but our faith will.
Every disappointment demands of us a victory! You can give up and retreat, or you can stand firm in your faith.
Are you disappointed because your children are no longer serving the Lord? Stand firm in faith.
Whether it is the healing you have not yet received or the financial breakthrough, don't let your disappointment determine what your future will look like.
I know people whose disappointment in someone keeps them from going to church. What they don't realize is that only the enemy benefits from this.
It is not difficult to throw in the towel, but rather to move on and hold on to the hope God gives that all will be well.
Without the hope God gives us, we would still be caught up in the disappointments that try to control our lives.
Psalms 37:34
"Put your hope in the LORD and stay on the path He points out..."
Which road are you on right now? One out of disappointments or one out of hope?
Do the disappointments seem to have grown into giants, or have you overcome them?
At 2Timothy 4:17 the apostle Paul ends his message with the words: "But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength so that I was able to bring the proclamation to a successful conclusion and all the nations heard the message. I was saved from the maw of the lion. 18 The Lord will save me from all evil and bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom. To Him be the glory for all eternity. Amen.
People will disappoint us, society will demand that we adapt, friends will turn their backs on us, but God will stand by us and give us strength to bring the message to fruition.
