“Has Anyone Hoped in the Lord and Been Disappointed?” by Melanie Rigney (@melanierigney)
You who fear the LORD, wait for his mercy, turn not away lest you fall. You who fear the LORD, trust him, and your reward will not be lost. You who fear the LORD, hope for good things, for lasting joy and mercy. You who fear the LORD, love him, and your hearts will be enlightened. Study the generations long past and understand; has anyone hoped in the LORD and been disappointed? (Sirach 2:7-10)
Commit your life to the Lord, and he will help you. (Psalm 37:5)
"Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me; and whoever receives me, receives not me but the One who sent me." (Mark 9:37)
Piety
Lord, help me to trust amid what seems to my earthly eye and brain to be Your disinterest in me.
Study
I doubt there has ever been a human being who believed in a higher power of any sort and was not disappointed in that power at some point.
I’m not talking about stuff like not getting a coveted house or job or yet again not winning a lottery. I’m talking about the hard, hard things, tragedies that come out of nowhere: freak accidents that leave us or loved ones less than whole physically or mentally. Breathtaking betrayals by those we trusted completely. Where, you might ask, is God in any of that?
The words of the wise Sirach light the path, I think: “Study the generations long past and understand.” Our personal Via Dolorosa can seem too much to bear in the moment. But time is not only the great healer but also the great illuminator. We adjust the cross’s weight on our shoulders and move on in belief. And someday, perhaps not as far down the road as we expected, we see the value. We see we have become more patient, less judgmental, a better listener, a stronger advocate that we were before. In some way, we see, love has resulted from what happened, whether it was divinely sent or the result of evil or chance.
While we were disappointed then, today the burden is part of life and does not seem quite so heavy… because He is helping us carry it. The disappointment fades, and in its place comes joy and trust.
Action
Pray intentionally for help with a weight you are attempting to carry alone.
Image credit: geralt at Pixabay: https://pixabay.com/en/signs-rust-board-disappointment-416444/
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