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Wake up, LORD! Why are you sleeping?

Get up! Don’t reject us forever!~ Psalm 44:23

    Have you ever been disappointed with God? If you have been a disciple of Jesus for any length of time the answer is probably Yes. You may not have admitted it out loud but you have felt it. You prayed that someone you loved would be healed, but they weren’t. You prayed that someone would live, but they didn’t. You prayed that someone would be saved, but they weren’t.

Take heart, beloved. If you have ever felt disappointed with God, you’re not alone. The Bible is chock-full of godly men and women who, at one time or another, were disappointed with God.

Here are just a few examples:

Remember Joseph, the dreamer? His dreams were shattered when he wound up in a pit, and then in a prison.

Once prosperous Job found himself in sackcloth and ashes having literally lost everything: his wealth, his family, and his health.

The Psalms contain a number of Laments. These, like Psalm 44:23 quoted above, are basically a litany of disappointments put to music.

Mary and Martha were disappointed and angry when Jesus arrived four days late when their brother lay ill. Had Jesus arrived earlier, their brother Lazarus would have lived. Shame on you, Jesus, for being late!

Paul requested three times that a thorn be removed from his flesh. God’s response? Denied. Denied. And...Denied.

To say that the disciples were disappointed with Jesus’ death on a cross would be a gross understatement. Despite the warnings, they didn’t see that coming!

In our humanity, in our falleness, we all have our expectations of God from time to time. And when He doesn’t quite live up to those expectations, we find ourselves disappointed.

The next time you feel disappointed with God (and it will come), it may be helpful for you to remember this about Him: He is sovereign. He is on the throne. His purposes for the world, His church, and for you as His beloved child, will not and cannot be thwarted.

Meditate on these verses:

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.” ~ Isaiah 55:8-9.

A person’s heart plans his way, but the LORD determines his steps.~ Proverbs 16:9

We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to His purpose. ~ Romans 8:28

And this.....

"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” ~John 14:27.

In His love,

The CARE Team

If you own a Bible translation with the words of Jesus in red, chapter 17 of the Gospel of John will be totally in red letters. These are not only the words of Jesus but this is an extended prayer of Jesus. And the prayer is specifically about you and me: “I pray for them. I am not praying for the world but for those you have given me, because they are yours.”

No matter how many times I’ve read that verse, a chill runs up my spine. This prayer is not for the world in general. It’s not for the legions of lost people. This prayer is lifted up to the Father on our behalf, all those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, all of us who have been saved by His shed blood on Calvary.

As believers, we have been adopted into the family of God. We are His children. God looks out for His children. Always.

This prayer for us is prayed just before Jesus and His disciples walk from Jerusalem over to the Mount of Olives where Jesus will pray, then be arrested, tried, falsely condemned, and then crucified.

In His last hours before His excruciating death on Calvary Jesus is not thinking about Himself, He is thinking about us.

So, what exactly is Jesus praying for on our behalf: Look at verse 11: “I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by Your name that You have given Me, so that they may be one as We are One.”(emphasis added) Jesus is praying for our oneness, our unity as believers. He is praying for the unity of the church. We are to be united just as the Holy Trinity—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—are united. The only time in all of eternity that the Son was separated from the Father and the Holy Spirit was during that time on Calvary when He took upon Himself the sins of the world, past, present, and future.

Jesus knew that tough times were ahead for His disciples—all of His disciples—and that His prayer for unity was necessary if His Church was to survive. He prayed then for us and now, seated at the right hand of the Father, He is praying for us, for our unity as believers.

You and I can be assured that as we prayerfully seek a new pastor for Park Place, Jesus is praying for our unity. He knows that we, as past believers have been down through the centuries, will be tempted by the flesh and the devil to have our way rather than His way. We, as the Church of Jesus Christ, must not allow this to happen. As Jesus prayed at Gethsemane, it must be God’s will, not ours that is done (Luke 22:42).

If we do this, Park Place will ultimately call the man He knows Park Place and our community needs (Proverbs 3:6-7).

Blessings,

Richard Thayer, Co-Chair

The Leadership Team