This morning Mickey Connolly of CrossWay Community Church exhorted us to trust God and do good when life doesn’t go our way. He showed us the example of David. David trusted God. He never charged God of wrongdoing or demanded an answer from Him. What a man of faith! But how do we get that kind of faith and Christian maturity in our own lives?

Maturity doesn’t happen overnight. It comes in a series of small decisions to trust God with small things. The big decisions people make are often the culmination of a character that they developed over the span of years and decades. So if life isn’t tough for you right now, spend time cultivating godly character. Make a habit of regular Bible reading and prayer. Fellowship with other believers. Share your faith with non-Christians. Serve in any way you can. Months and years of doing this will make a big difference when a crisis hits.

Not every big disappointment waits until we are fully prepared to handle it well, though, does it? So what do you do if you’re currently struggling with a major disappointment in your life? I’d recommend everything Mickey said. Please listen to the sermon if you haven’t, yet. In addition to what Mickey suggested, here are some things that have helped me deal with some pretty big disappointments I’ve had over the past few years.

• Read Scripture
  Reading my Bible every day has helped me through some times when I thought I couldn’t go on. Scripture helped me get God’s perspective on things. When I suffer, the first thing I lose is a proper perspective.
• Pray
  Being honest to God and talking to Him about my situation has helped tremendously. It’s never right to be angry at God, since that’s an expression of accusing God of wrongdoing. But the Psalms are full of people expressing themselves to God. God knows what you’re thinking and feeling. Talking to Him about your situation helps you run to God instead of away from Him.
• Talk to other people about your disappointment
  Telling others what you’re going through does a few things. It has helped others know how to pray for me. It opens me up to receive the insights, encouragement, and even correction from others. I’ve been meeting with a friend on a regular basis to talk about God, growth, how I’m doing, and how I’m responding to my circumstances. This has been a lifeline! One suggestion: make sure you pick one or more people who are wise and mature in their Christian walk. Challenging life situations will only be made worse by bad advice. You need biblical wisdom, not worldly opinion.
• Read good books
  The ones that have helped me most come in two varieties.
  1. Books about God
     These put my struggles in perspective by helping me realize the immensity and grandeur of God. The Cross of Christ by John Stott, The Knowledge of the Holy by A. W. Tozer, and God and Creation by Herman Bavinck are three that have been particularly helpful. Desiring God and The Pleasures of God by John Piper are very good, as well.
  2. Books about suffering or disappointment
     You’ve got to be careful with these, since there are some lousy books on this topic. I’ve benefitted from Lost in the Middle by Paul Tripp and Depression by Ed Welch. In Two Minds (re-published as God in the Dark) by Os Guinness has helped me at times when I’ve been tempted to question God. I just started reading How Long, O Lord? by D. A. Carson. It looks like a promising book, and I have only heard good reviews about it.

  Life is short. Read good books.

I’ll try to follow up with some more suggestions that have helped me. What has helped you trust God in the midst of your disappointments?

Tags: Books, disappointment, fellowship, Sermons, spiritual disciplines, suffering, trusting God