Friday, May 6, 2011

Hope, not Disappointment

"Those Who Hope in Me will Not Be Disappointed." ~God


Over the last few weeks, I've thought about this alot. Truthfully, my first thought was "yea right...i don't believe this is true."

I know that's true in my head, but I've wrestled with believing it in my heart. I started thinking about this verse and making a short list in my head of things I've been disappointed in. Lack of certain friends and family having a saving faith in Christ, lack of funding as I continue in ministry, lack of a spouse after praying for many years, lack of community that I've prayed for, and most recently, not being able to go to a summer program with some of the key students I work with.

Have I been disappointed? Yes. If I'm honest with myself...I have.

So How then can this statement really be true?

In my praying and wrestling with myself, the Lord revealed some things to me. The verse does not say that "Those who know what the Lord's plan is will not be disappointed."  Its made me realize that if I knew the Lord's plan, i probably would be fully content in his ways. Recently, I heard a speaker who said  the following quote:


 "God's will is what you and I would choose if we had all the information God has." ~Tom Yeakley


Thus, if my hope is based only on what I think God's plan should be rather than trusting that He has a plan better than my thoughts and ways, disappointment can happen.


This leads me to recognize that the verse also does not say "Those who hope in the outcome of circumstances will not be disappointed."


When I really think through all this I realize, the outcome of circumstances is what I've been hoping in rather than the character of the God of Heaven and Earth. In reflecting on this, I realized, circumstances can and will disappoint us sometimes, but that's not what I am to hope in either. 


Those who hope in THE LORD will not be disappointed. That is the person of Christ, the Character of God. Because think about this for a minute. 

God's Character includes (this is by no means a comprehensive list):

  • Unfailing Love (Psalm 13:5)
  • Unfathomable Understanding (Isaiah 40:28)
  • Unlimited Patience ( 1 Timothy 1:16)
  • Immeasurable Ability (Ephesians 3:20)
  • Unbelievable Plans (Jer 29:11)
And really...that's just the tip of the iceburg. 


In light of this, Hoping in the Lord does prove to lead to amazement and adventure and excitement and joy. And these words don't really go with disappointment.

This Blog Brought To you by God's Character, not Circumstantial Outcomes.

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