Dealing with Disappointment

In my home country, Nigeria, elections are ongoing to choose the next set of (servant) leaders that will oversee the country's governance for the next four years. For a lot of people, especially the youths, these elections were seen as a watershed moment in Nigeria’s history. However, as is the case with life, we do not always get what we want, which can result in disappointment. Considering how often we experience disappointment- some greater than others- how do we as children of God deal with disappointment? Not because disappointment is a sin but because our response to it is important.

While doing some research for this article, I stumbled upon one written in 2007 that made me realise that even in the bible, there were so many people that experienced disappointment. One such person was Elijah, the mighty prophet that appeared to Jesus on the mount (Matt. 17:3), the same one that won a great victory on Mount Carmel (I Kings 18:20-40) and ended the drought that had plagued Israel. For all his effort, he was rewarded by Jezebel with a death threat and all he could think of in the midst of his disappointment was for God to kill him (I Kings 19:2-4). Some disappointments in life are so great that all we want is to die.

David, the man after God’s heart (I Sam. 13:14, Acts 13:22), was another person that faced multiple disappointments. His life was one that had the highest of highs (the victory against Goliath, being anointed King) to the lowest of lows (Saul trying to kill him, his men wanting to stone him to death). Others like Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, Hannah and Elizabeth waited for years for the fruit of the womb. Sarah even laughed when God told her she would have a child (Gen. 18:12-15) because she had gone way past the childbearing age and had completely given up.

When you are faced with disappointment, the best thing to do is to go into a mode of thanksgiving (I Thess. 5:18). Why? Because it is God’s will for you. When you give God thanks, you are displaying your faith and trust in God and showing the devil that he has no hold on you. No matter the disappointment, David always found a way to praise God. In Ps. 42, David kept talking about how discouraged he felt before deciding that he will praise God.

The act of giving thanks is so powerful that the devil tries to isolate you and keep you away from it. That was what happened to Elijah, he got so desperate that he was praying to God to kill him. Borrowing a line from Todd Galberth’s song: Fear is not my future, disappointment is not the end, neither is it your story. Every one of these people had an ending that was greater than their former (Rom. 8:28). Some of them (David, Sarah) were even named in the Heroes Hall of Faith (Heb. 11).

During the February Hallelujah Challenge, Pst. Nathaniel Bassey expatiated on what it meant to stand still. Standing still doesn’t mean not doing anything, it means praising God and warring in the spirit. The charge for you is that when you are dealing with disappointment, stand still! When you do so, you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you (II Chr. 20:17). I believe and declare that the enemy you see today (disappointment) you will never see again in Jesus’ name (Ex. 14:13-14).

Photo cred: YouVersion