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Psalm 119:116 – Lord, sustain me as you promised, that I may live! Do not let my hope be crushed. (NLT)
We sat in a small group and talked about appointments and disappointments. When I have an appointment, someone has agreed to meet me at a certain time, or I've agreed to meet them. Disappointment is the difference between my expectations and what happens. If my doctor's appointment is cancelled when I really need to see him, I'm disappointed. If I expect my children to succeed in school and college and they don't, I'm disappointed. If I'm looking for a pay increase and don't get it, I'm disappointed. When I do everything that I should do to promote good health, only to find out that I have a terminal illness, I'm disappointed. When hope is crushed, I experience the disappointment.
Disappointment and crushing of hope have been friends of mine quite a few times. They showed up when my son decided to quit school. They walked in when a spouse walked out. They arrived when I was told someone else had been hired for the job. My drooling over a new car was sopped up by the salesman who said that my credit rating wasn't high enough for a loan.
For a shepherd, disappointments might be different. Perhaps the sheep didn't produce as much wool as he had hoped. Or a wild animal killed a few of his prize animals. Maybe one ate poisonous weeds or wandered too close to the edge of the mountain and fell to its death.
If I'm not careful, bitterness can stroll in when my hopes are crushed. There are few things in life that I can control. Everything else is controlled by the forces of nature or the actions of others. I can, however, remember that God is in control, no matter how bleak my circumstances appear. God is never disappointed — or surprised — because He knows everything that's going to happen. He orchestrates world events and the situations in my life. Believing in His unconditional love helps me to navigate the disappointments of life without their crushing my hopes.
Don't let life's disappointments crush your hopes. Trust God for the best.
Prayer: Father, guide us to look to You when circumstances attempt to crush our hopes. Amen.
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Amen to your prayer.
Thanks for sharing this devotional and our hope through Christ Jesus. Blessings.
My heavenly Father knew I needed to hear this today. Thank you and God bless you.
Good thought for today Martin,
Blessings in Christ.
Thanks, Martin, for the message of encouragement, reminding us where our strength comes from.
And haven’t we all felt the good and the good? Good thoughts for all.
Thanks for your words, Martin.
Everyday is an appointment with hope that does not fail, when that appointment is with the Lord. Good word Martin. May today bring special blessing your way.
Blessings.
Dear Martin,
Thank you for sharing your disappointments, your faith, and the hope that is for all believers in Christ.
Hi Martin,
You are right sometimes disappointments tend to affect our every day living.
Sometimes I have to get a hold of myself and only worry about the things that I can do something about.
Martin – Yes, disappointments can crush us; the best place for us is to be in constant contact with our burden bearer – the Lord Jesus Christ. Thank you for reminding us of this treasure we can rely upon.
God bless.
Thanks Martin, especially for making yourself vulnerable and sharing the hope that still resides I have often said it is easy to have hope on the mountaintops, but it takes real faith when in the valleys.
Blessings.
(BC)
Hello Martin, it is so very true – what you said about disappointments crushing our hopes and leaving us bitter and angry/frustrated! As they say “… been there, done that!“ I too have experienced some of the same disappointments that you described and in the end it was my faith that got me through and it continues to get me through each day/week/month etc. Thank you for your meditation today. It was helpful, meaningful and true!
Once again you have shared poignant moments that touch the heart. Thank you for reminding us of our vulnerabilities in this world at large and also the fact that we are under the Master’s hand ! I spoke at a funeral and tried to emphasize the importance of hope in the grand scheme of things. And these three abide FAITH HOPE and LOVE and the greatest of these is LOVE.
Dear Martin:
I always enjoy your meditations. However, today’s meditation really struck home.
Sometimes, it feels as if I have to deal with more disappointments than most people do. I struggle with bitterness too. My mother’s life was also challenging to say the least and she often did give into bitterness. It is the memory of her struggle with it, that often hid her wonderful atributes, which keeps me working at things in my own life. I don’t want to be remembered as a bitter woman – though many mornings, I do confess, I want to give in. I often struggle with the concept of God having unconditional love for all. It often feels like there is more love for some than for others, especially around holidays like Valentine’s day as I really never wanted to live alone.
Your writing is a good reminder, simply and concisely written. So I would like to add my Amen and thank you for a very timely and meaningful piece of writing.
God bless.
I’m not sleeping this night, feeling the weight of life.
Your many devotions bless me. This time you spoke straight to my heart and through my tears of life as I wonder why God has me still on this life’s journey when I just want to go home to heaven. Wondering why God chose this journey of earth to go through to get to Him – seems like a cruel joke at times. No, I don’t have health issues just heart issues, wishing for what was and not what is.
\I love my Lord so much and aim to please and do His will, but not sure what that means any more. I give others great wisdom and encouragement then cry buckets of tears when alone. No, I’m not looking for you to give me answers as I know the right words – just tired of life and yet have so much to be grateful for and lift them to God’s ears often. And I’ve often said that when one loses hope one has lost everything, and so it seems now.
Thank you again for your many devotions of wisdom over time. And thanks for letting me spout this early morning. I feel better already and wish you a joy-filled day.
Blessings.