BY TONY HOSS
Being disappointed is a very painful situation. Disappointment oftentimes feels like an empty spot in our stomachs or like a rock hurdling towards the bottom of our spirits. It is an even more painful experience when someone that is close to you lets you down or deserts you. It is upsetting when someone you thought you could trust lets you down. Even more painful are the times when a fellow Christian lets you down or disappoints you. These are all moments of discouragement.
How do we handle discouragement? How do we handle it when friends and family are not as close as we want to be? What do I do when my spouse and friends don’t talk as we should? What do we do when others let us down either by their words or actions? The facts are, we will all experience hurt and disappointment in our lives. But we are not without encouragement.
The writer of Proverbs said, “Many seek an audience with a ruler, but it is from the Lord that one gets justice” Proverbs 29:26. When our worldly rulers let you down, you need to remember that God is still in control. In Proverbs 21:15 we read, “When justice is done, it brings joy to the righteous but terror to evildoers.” While there are times when life seems, unjust there will be a day when God will enact true justice on all people. If you have been discouraged by members within the church or others and feel like giving up we read, “Stop listening to instruction, my son, and you will stray from the words of knowledge” Proverbs 19:27. When we are discouraged by others or situations in life we are reminded, “Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans” Proverbs 16:3.
The apostle Paul was oftentimes let down by others who claimed to have the same desire and love for Christ and the church. He knew what it was like to be forsaken by those closest to him. In 2 Ti 4:14-17, we read, “Alexander the coppersmith did me much evil: the Lord reward him according to his works: Of whom be thou ware also; for he hath greatly withstood our words. At my first answer no man stood with me, but all men forsook me: I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge. Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me and strengthened me; that by me the preaching might be fully known, and that all the Gentiles might hear: and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion.”
People in the world and in the church may often bring us much harm. Such was the case for Paul with Demas (2 Tim. 4:10). One thought of comfort may be in the fact that God will reward such people. But we can help avoid such situations when we guard against them (Phil. 3:1-2). While there were some events in Paul’s life were a discouragement, Paul always knew where to place his confidence (Phil. 4:13). We too must place our trust in the God of all, for it is He that knows how to repay the iniquities of people (Rom. 12:19; Isaiah 59:18).
Regardless of the situations we may face in life we can know assuredly that God is on our side and will never leave us (Heb. 13:5-6). God will always be with His people and will in the end deliver them out of the hand of all evil and reward them with eternal glory.
(Questions and Answers is provided by Tony Hoss, minister of Centerview Church of Christ, Elizabethton. He can be contacted at (423-737-2287) or by e-mail at: tmagho1@comcast.net)