Back in the day – way, way back – there was a famous musician and wordsmith. This man, Asaph, wrote about 12 of the Psalms. He was not only a singer but the chief of the Levites appointed to minister before the ark of the Lord (1 Chronicles 16:4-5) as well as a prophet. This was a man grounded in God.

However, there came a time when life got to him and he spent a chunk of Psalm 73 lamenting and almost giving up (Ps 73:1). You see, Asaph was disappointed. He questioned the value of being holy when those who did not have God or lived according to His will, were seemingly getting away with it and actually doing quite well. Whilst he was “stricken and punished all day long” (verse 14). His words dripped with disappointment.

But then something happened and he gained an eternal perspective that flipped his grumbling on its end. Asaph showed us what to do when we are disappointed. He went to the house of the Lord and gained understanding (verse 15-17).

Then the Lord made him realise the desolation and downfall that awaited the ungodly (verses 18-20). In his encounter with God, his ignorance was revealed (Psalm 73:22).

Disappointment is inevitable this side of heaven. People will let us down, circumstances will not work out as we’ve planned, and we would sometimes let ourselves down. Many times, we may pray and fast, beseeching the Lord to take away certain thorns and turn situations around and it would seem as if He’s not listening.

To make matters worse, we compare ourselves to others who are seemingly living a rosy life or they are getting whatever they want. Maybe that couple who already have children are pregnant again whilst you are still praying to be blessed with one child or perhaps others have shared the miracle of God healing them, yet for whatever reason He hasn’t deemed fit to remove your illness. It could be that you’ve been praying for a job to no avail even though God knows that if you had one, you would be a diligent and faithful worker, so why isn’t He answering your pleas? The list goes on. Life can be disappointing and in turn we can feel disappointed by God.

God is good, all the time…

For us to be able to handle the disappointing situations in our lives, we have to do like Asaph did and go to God to renew our perspective.

This can be extremely hard especially because those situations do not match up with our picture of a good God; one who desires to give us only good things (Psalm 84:11 and Jeremiah 29:11). Here’s where I find that our definition of what is “good” and God’s eternal perspective differs somewhat. Put simply, God is the greatest good and so regardless of our circumstances, as long as we have Him, He has done us good.

Psalm 16:2 (AMP) says, “I said to the Lord , “You are my Lord; I have no good besides You”.

In fact, God will often engineer situations to bring us more of Him (read: good). But because “our knowledge is fragmentary and incomplete” (1 Corinthians 13:9, AMP), we are left reeling with disappointment, wondering why heaven is like brass to our prayers.

However, God’s appointment is often in the disappointment.

Case in point: Saul and his father’s men had been searching for their missing donkeys to no avail (1 Samuel 9:3). Hours of wandering around in the sun with no donkey to show for it. They had gone to neighbouring towns, knocking on doors, checking farms and ditches. Saul was probably fed up, tired and cranky (I know I would be). He decided that it was probably prudent to turn back home before his father started to think that they were lost too (1 Samuel 9:5). I can just imagine his disappointment. They had tried so hard. Then one of the servants suggested going to speak with a prophet that he’d heard of. Cue Samuel. Saul agreed with this plan.

This story doesn’t sound particularly fantastic unless you read on until verses 15-16. There we see that God had preordained for Saul to meet with Samuel at that appointed time! Wow. “Now a day before Saul came, the Lord had [a]informed Samuel [of this], saying, “About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him as leader over My people Israel; and he will save My people from the hand of the Philistines. For I have looked upon [the distress of] My people, because their cry [for help] has come to Me.” (1 Samuel 9:15-16, AMP)

Like Asaph, we are shown these disappointing events through the lens of an eternal perspective. Suddenly, we see that the missing farmyard animals and the so-far-fruitless search, were all part of God’s grand plan to get Saul to Samuel and get him anointed as king.

The disciples would have been very disappointed as Jesus was crucified. This great man that they believed to be the Saviour of Israel, nay, the world was being killed like a common criminal. But we all now know that without the death of Jesus, there wouldn’t be a resurrection and we wouldn’t have eternal salvation (1 Corinthians 15:14; Luke 24:25).

It is not always obvious to us but when things have turned south and the road back up seems bumpy and impossible, God is simply using that route to bring us more of Him (read: good).

…and all the time God is good

I can just imagine Moses’ disappointment at not making it to the Promised Land. After 40 years in the wilderness, leading a bunch of some of the most headstrong people, and pleading for God not to destroy them, he did not get to make it to Canaan. It hardly seems fair. But.

Moses may not have made it to the land flowing with milk and honey but in his death we can be assured that he is with the Lord (Deuteronomy 34:6), in heaven – a city John describes as being made with pure gold and gated with pearls (Revelation 21).

Sometimes, our disappointments will not be assuaged in this life. But God is still good and ultimately, working everything out to bring us good (read: Him).

In order to be able to bear the soul-crushing weight of disappointment, we have to set our hopes and expectations on the right thing – God. Whenever we long for something (healing, wealth, job, children, etc.) more than the only One who can truly satisfy then we risk disappointment.

Encouraging Scriptures that Show God Will Never Disappoint

• Romans 10:11 (AMP) – “For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in Him [whoever adheres to, trusts in, and relies on Him] will not be disappointed [in his expectations]”.
• Psalm 22:5 (AMP) – “They cried out to You and were delivered; They trusted in You and were not disappointed or ashamed”.
• 1 Peter 2:6 (AMP) – “For this is contained in Scripture: “Behold, I am laying in Z ion a chosen stone, a precious (honored) Cornerstone, And he who believes in H im [whoever adheres to, trusts in, and relies on Him] will never be disappointed [in his expectations].”
• Isaiah 50:7 (AMP) – “For the Lord God helps Me, Therefore, I have not been ashamed or humiliated. Therefore, I have made My face like flint, And I know that I shall not be put to shame”.
• Proverbs 23:18 (AMP) – “Surely there is a future [and a reward], And your hope and expectation will not be cut off”.

This post was originally written as part of Five Minute Friday but may also be linked up at these places.

(Image credit: Abigail Keenan from Unsplash)