Episode Details

Disappointment is more than a feeling – It’s a direction

• Leads you on a path

This is important because our series is called “LOST”

• A WAY out of the wilderness

A WILDERNESS SEASON IS WHERE WE LEARN WHO GOD IS, HOW HE LOVES US, AND HOW WE SHOULD INTERACT WITH HIM

Part of this learning is learning HOW to handle Disappointment

• Especially disappointment with God

 

What is disappointment?

Disappointment happens when my expectations are not aligned with my real-time experiences

Disappointment is magnified in “WILDERNESS” season because we are already stressed/worried/anxious/frustrated

 

“When God’s timing seems questionable, his lack of intervention seems hurtful, and his promises seem doubtful, I get afraid. I get confused. And left alone with those feelings, I can’t help but feel disappointed that God isn’t doing what I assume a good God should do.” ~ Lysa Terkeurst

 

This is exactly where some of you are right now—disappointed with God:

• You keep praying, but he keeps ignoring you.
• All your friends are getting married right now, but you aren’t.
• You asked him to heal, but instead, your loved one got worse.
• You busted your butt in the off-season, but someone else got the starting position.
• You’re killing yourself trying to make rent and feed kids, but prayer isn’t paying the bills.
• You’ve done everything right in parenting, yet your kids aren’t turning out like you hoped. . . or maybe God isn’t giving you the kids you long for in the first place.

And you’re like, “God, I don’t understand! How can this be your perfect plan? How can this be good? God, I had dreams but all you’ve left me with are disappointments.”

 

The Problem with disappointment is that it’s NOT just a FEELING, it’s a DIRECTION…

 

Disappointment Directed Decisions

Examples:

Disappointed in a previous relationship, so you overcompensate in the next one

• Overly Jealous
• Overly Controlling

 

Disappointed with yourself, so you second guess or push yourself too hard

• Never have any joy

 

Disappointed in how you were raised, so you choose to either over-control or passively parent

 

Disappointed in your life, so you look for someone to blame

 

What we must know:

Disappointment in life is unavoidable, but how we handle it matters and the story the Bible is telling has a lot to say about that…

 

Catching the story up to this point

• Freed the people from Egypt
• Led them through the Red Sea
• God has fed the people in the desert
• Manna
• Quail
• God has given them victory over some enemies
• Taken them to Mount Sinai
• Gives them the 10 Commandments
• Moses goes up the mountain to hear from God
• Gone for about 40 days

 

Exodus 32

1 When the people saw that Moses delayed in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said to him, “Come, make gods for us who will go before us because this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt—we don’t know what has happened to him!”

1: Disappointment Leads you to FORGET

They forgot what ALL God has already done for them

 

What all had God done for them:

• Fed them
• Led them
• Gave them water
• Freed them from the greatest empire

 

But as soon as Moses was gone a little too long, they FORGOT

• What God had commanded
• What his purpose for them was as His people

 

Disappoint causes us to come down with…

Spiritual Amnesia

 

How do we handle disappointment?
Remembering that…

GOD IS FAITHFU