by Rev Steve Nickodemus

Living With Disappointment.

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.”
Romans 8:28

I was dreaming of a white Christmas…but the only white on the landscape, in Oregon, was left by the truck spreading lime on the vineyard.  Hardly the stuff of treetops glistening, and children listening to hear sleigh bells in the snow!

No snow at Christmas is only a minor disappointment in the grand scheme of life.  How disappointed we are, how many expectations destroyed, and how many hopes and dreams are dashed in the grief of life!  How many of my neighbors were not just missing snow at Christmas, but were grieving over an empty chair in their family Christmas circle this year.  Loved ones have died, relationships are estranged, and lifetime hopes are destroyed.  Children are without parents, parents are without children, and many are without joy or peace in their lives.

How shall we live with the disappointments and grief of life?  After the death of my first wife, the above verse was hard to comprehend and yet gave me great comfort, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.”  When life disappoints, God is making all things work together for good in my life.  How do I know that for sure?  Because, God loves me in His Son.

Sure there is disappointment, and grief, at Christmas, but the whole point of Christmas is that God loved me so much that He sent His only Son into the world to save me and all who would believe on Him.  In the midst of grief, God loves me and is making all things work for good.

Thank you, Lord, for Your Son and Your promises in the grief and disappointments of life. Amen.

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs Colorado