Woe is me because of my hurt!
My wound is grievous.
But I said, "Truly this is an affliction,
and I must bear it."
(Jeremiah 10:19 ESV)
Each of us must learn how to handle the disappointments of life. All of us know what it means to have our dreams shattered and our plans changed. Sometimes disappointment so crushes people that they are emotionally handicapped for life. And yet there are people who rise above the broken dreams and live in victory. In this meditation, I want to introduce you to a man who faced lifelong disappointment and yet triumphed over it all.
If ever a man experienced disappointments and personal tragedy, it was Jeremiah. He was called to serve God at a difficult time in history. And he was given a difficult message to proclaim, for God told him to warn the nation that judgment was coming and they had better repent. Jeremiah served the Lord faithfully for over forty years. He never compromised in his message or his loyalty. His family turned against him, and ultimately the entire nation turned against him. He lived to see his beloved nation overrun by the enemy, and his beloved city and temple completely destroyed.
If ever a man had a broken heart, it was Jeremiah. His book of prophecies bears witness to his burden, and the Book of Lamentations, which he also wrote, has tear stains on almost every verse. Imagine serving God faithfully for a lifetime and, in the end, seeing everything fall apart! Jeremiah could have died a bitter and broken man, but he did not. In the strength of the Lord he was able to face his disappointments and accept them.
I could point you to many statements in Jeremiah's prophecy that indicate his courage and faith, but just one of them will meet the need in this message. It is found in Jeremiah 10:19: "Woe is me for my hurt! my wound is grievous: but I said, Truly this is a grief, and I must bear it." That statement is, to me, one of the greatest declarations of faith and faithfulness found anywhere in the Bible. Let's learn from the prophet Jeremiah how to face and conquer the disappointments of life.
The first truth he teaches us is this: expect disappointments. Life is not always going to be sunny and clear; there will be days—and perhaps weeks—when it will be stormy and dark. Some people have the idea that faithful Christians escape disappointments, but this is not true. God does not guarantee that we will never have a broken heart. God does not promise to take away our tears this side of heaven. As you read your Bible, and as you read Christian biography, you discover that the faithful saints of God have their share of disappointments.
Don't you think godly Abraham was disappointed in the behavior of his nephew Lot? Wasn't Joseph burdened at the selfish treatment he received from his brothers? The sins of the people of Israel broke the heart of Moses time after time, so much so that he even wanted to die! King David had great plans for his family, yet some of his sons were so sinful they almost wrecked the nation. As you read the letters of Paul, you learn that he too knew what it was to suffer disappointment and to have his own helpers in the ministry fail him and the Lord. The Lord never promised us an easy life, so expect disappointments.
Jeremiah did not try to fool himself into thinking everything was fine. "Woe is me for my hurt!" he wrote. "My wound is grievous." He admitted that his heart was broken. He openly confessed that he had been wounded by those who should have caused him joy. Expect disappointment; it is one of the hard facts of life.
The prophet Jeremiah teaches us a second truth: our disappointments are in the hands of God. I am sure there were many times when the prophet thought he had been forsaken by God. Why wasn't God answering his prayers? Why wasn't the Word he was preaching bearing fruit and changing the nation? Was it really worth it all staying there and ministering to such hard-hearted people?
God knew what was happening, and God was ruling and overruling in Jeremiah's life. God permitted His servant to suffer. God protected him when the king wanted to kill him, and God provided for him so he did not go hungry. God even knew how Jeremiah would die, and He did not prevent it. God was there whether or not Jeremiah saw Him or felt His presence.
The first lie that the enemy whispers to us when disappointment comes is that God has failed. Perhaps you have received a doctor's report, and the report is not what you expected. You prayed, you read your Bible and claimed God's promises, and still the disappointment came. Does this mean that God has failed? No, it does not. Does it mean that we have failed God? Not necessarily. Jeremiah was faithful to serve God even to the point of death, and yet he did not live to see his dreams for his people fulfilled.
Dr. A. T. Pierson used to say, "Disappointments are His appointments." It takes faith to believe that and rest upon it, but it is true that God is still on the throne, and He is going to accomplish His wonderful purposes in our lives, if we will let Him. If we fight circumstances and become bitter, then God cannot accomplish in us and through us all that He has in mind. If we yield and trust Him to do what is best, then all things will work together for good.
Listen to Jeremiah's declaration of faith as he faces the painful disappointments of life: "Woe is me for my hurt! my wound is grievous: but I said, Truly this is a grief, and I must bear it." He did not blame God or other people; he did not try to "pass the buck"; he did not fight circumstances and try to change God's mind. He accepted by faith the burden of his grief, and he trusted God to work out His perfect will. There is a basic law in this universe that says, "Fight the will of God and it will break you; accept the will of God and it will make you." Which will you do?
We have learned two helpful truths about the disappointments of life: first, expect them; second, believe that God is working out a perfect plan. The third truth is this: yield to God's will and let Him heal your broken heart and fulfill His desires. Jeremiah did not fight God, although there were times when he questioned God's will. He did not try to get his own way. Instead Jeremiah yielded to the will of God and let God work out His perfect plan.
What was the result? The nation was taken captive and carried to Babylon. And Jeremiah was kidnapped and taken to Egypt by some fanatics, and there, according to tradition, he was stoned to death for preaching the truth. The story does not have a happy ending, but in the will of God, every ending is a happy one. God does not judge a man's life by what the newspapers say. He judges righteously on the basis of what is eternal.
What did God accomplish in this tragic history? For one thing, God made a man who was very much like the Lord Jesus Christ. When Jesus was here on earth, He asked His disciples what people were saying about Him; and one of the answers was, "You are the prophet Jeremiah." What a tremendous compliment, to be compared to the Lord Jesus Christ! When you read Jeremiah's life, you can find many parallels between him and the Savior—and the thing that made him that way was his suffering. The very disappointments of life were the tools that carved Jeremiah and polished him and made him like Jesus Christ.
Isn't that what disappointments are all about? God is working all things together for good, and part of that good (according to Romans 8:29) is that we might be conformed to the image of His Son—made more like the Lord Jesus Christ. The four men in the Old Testament who best picture Jesus Christ are men who suffered—Joseph, Moses, David, and Jeremiah. So, if you and I suffer, it is because God wants to polish us and make us like His own Son.
God builds character in the disappointments of life and He also gives a witness. In the midst of his disappointments, Jeremiah bore witness to the Lord and gave His message to the people. By his preaching and his living, Jeremiah pointed others to God. Disappointments are not only opportunities for maturity, but they are also opportunities for ministry. We today have the writings of Jeremiah for our own learning and living because the prophet was faithful to God. When you accept disappointments, trust God, and yield to Him, you leave something behind to help others in the battles of life.
"Truly this is a grief, and I must bear it," wrote Jeremiah. He did not complain about it—he accepted his disappointments and let God use them for his good and for the glory of God.
Wiersbe, W. W. (2003). The bumps are what you climb on. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker.
--
Regards,
Ryan Chia
My wound is grievous.
But I said, "Truly this is an affliction,
and I must bear it."
(Jeremiah 10:19 ESV)
Each of us must learn how to handle the disappointments of life. All of us know what it means to have our dreams shattered and our plans changed. Sometimes disappointment so crushes people that they are emotionally handicapped for life. And yet there are people who rise above the broken dreams and live in victory. In this meditation, I want to introduce you to a man who faced lifelong disappointment and yet triumphed over it all.
If ever a man experienced disappointments and personal tragedy, it was Jeremiah. He was called to serve God at a difficult time in history. And he was given a difficult message to proclaim, for God told him to warn the nation that judgment was coming and they had better repent. Jeremiah served the Lord faithfully for over forty years. He never compromised in his message or his loyalty. His family turned against him, and ultimately the entire nation turned against him. He lived to see his beloved nation overrun by the enemy, and his beloved city and temple completely destroyed.
If ever a man had a broken heart, it was Jeremiah. His book of prophecies bears witness to his burden, and the Book of Lamentations, which he also wrote, has tear stains on almost every verse. Imagine serving God faithfully for a lifetime and, in the end, seeing everything fall apart! Jeremiah could have died a bitter and broken man, but he did not. In the strength of the Lord he was able to face his disappointments and accept them.
I could point you to many statements in Jeremiah's prophecy that indicate his courage and faith, but just one of them will meet the need in this message. It is found in Jeremiah 10:19: "Woe is me for my hurt! my wound is grievous: but I said, Truly this is a grief, and I must bear it." That statement is, to me, one of the greatest declarations of faith and faithfulness found anywhere in the Bible. Let's learn from the prophet Jeremiah how to face and conquer the disappointments of life.
The first truth he teaches us is this: expect disappointments. Life is not always going to be sunny and clear; there will be days—and perhaps weeks—when it will be stormy and dark. Some people have the idea that faithful Christians escape disappointments, but this is not true. God does not guarantee that we will never have a broken heart. God does not promise to take away our tears this side of heaven. As you read your Bible, and as you read Christian biography, you discover that the faithful saints of God have their share of disappointments.
Don't you think godly Abraham was disappointed in the behavior of his nephew Lot? Wasn't Joseph burdened at the selfish treatment he received from his brothers? The sins of the people of Israel broke the heart of Moses time after time, so much so that he even wanted to die! King David had great plans for his family, yet some of his sons were so sinful they almost wrecked the nation. As you read the letters of Paul, you learn that he too knew what it was to suffer disappointment and to have his own helpers in the ministry fail him and the Lord. The Lord never promised us an easy life, so expect disappointments.
Jeremiah did not try to fool himself into thinking everything was fine. "Woe is me for my hurt!" he wrote. "My wound is grievous." He admitted that his heart was broken. He openly confessed that he had been wounded by those who should have caused him joy. Expect disappointment; it is one of the hard facts of life.
The prophet Jeremiah teaches us a second truth: our disappointments are in the hands of God. I am sure there were many times when the prophet thought he had been forsaken by God. Why wasn't God answering his prayers? Why wasn't the Word he was preaching bearing fruit and changing the nation? Was it really worth it all staying there and ministering to such hard-hearted people?
God knew what was happening, and God was ruling and overruling in Jeremiah's life. God permitted His servant to suffer. God protected him when the king wanted to kill him, and God provided for him so he did not go hungry. God even knew how Jeremiah would die, and He did not prevent it. God was there whether or not Jeremiah saw Him or felt His presence.
The first lie that the enemy whispers to us when disappointment comes is that God has failed. Perhaps you have received a doctor's report, and the report is not what you expected. You prayed, you read your Bible and claimed God's promises, and still the disappointment came. Does this mean that God has failed? No, it does not. Does it mean that we have failed God? Not necessarily. Jeremiah was faithful to serve God even to the point of death, and yet he did not live to see his dreams for his people fulfilled.
Dr. A. T. Pierson used to say, "Disappointments are His appointments." It takes faith to believe that and rest upon it, but it is true that God is still on the throne, and He is going to accomplish His wonderful purposes in our lives, if we will let Him. If we fight circumstances and become bitter, then God cannot accomplish in us and through us all that He has in mind. If we yield and trust Him to do what is best, then all things will work together for good.
Listen to Jeremiah's declaration of faith as he faces the painful disappointments of life: "Woe is me for my hurt! my wound is grievous: but I said, Truly this is a grief, and I must bear it." He did not blame God or other people; he did not try to "pass the buck"; he did not fight circumstances and try to change God's mind. He accepted by faith the burden of his grief, and he trusted God to work out His perfect will. There is a basic law in this universe that says, "Fight the will of God and it will break you; accept the will of God and it will make you." Which will you do?
We have learned two helpful truths about the disappointments of life: first, expect them; second, believe that God is working out a perfect plan. The third truth is this: yield to God's will and let Him heal your broken heart and fulfill His desires. Jeremiah did not fight God, although there were times when he questioned God's will. He did not try to get his own way. Instead Jeremiah yielded to the will of God and let God work out His perfect plan.
What was the result? The nation was taken captive and carried to Babylon. And Jeremiah was kidnapped and taken to Egypt by some fanatics, and there, according to tradition, he was stoned to death for preaching the truth. The story does not have a happy ending, but in the will of God, every ending is a happy one. God does not judge a man's life by what the newspapers say. He judges righteously on the basis of what is eternal.
What did God accomplish in this tragic history? For one thing, God made a man who was very much like the Lord Jesus Christ. When Jesus was here on earth, He asked His disciples what people were saying about Him; and one of the answers was, "You are the prophet Jeremiah." What a tremendous compliment, to be compared to the Lord Jesus Christ! When you read Jeremiah's life, you can find many parallels between him and the Savior—and the thing that made him that way was his suffering. The very disappointments of life were the tools that carved Jeremiah and polished him and made him like Jesus Christ.
Isn't that what disappointments are all about? God is working all things together for good, and part of that good (according to Romans 8:29) is that we might be conformed to the image of His Son—made more like the Lord Jesus Christ. The four men in the Old Testament who best picture Jesus Christ are men who suffered—Joseph, Moses, David, and Jeremiah. So, if you and I suffer, it is because God wants to polish us and make us like His own Son.
God builds character in the disappointments of life and He also gives a witness. In the midst of his disappointments, Jeremiah bore witness to the Lord and gave His message to the people. By his preaching and his living, Jeremiah pointed others to God. Disappointments are not only opportunities for maturity, but they are also opportunities for ministry. We today have the writings of Jeremiah for our own learning and living because the prophet was faithful to God. When you accept disappointments, trust God, and yield to Him, you leave something behind to help others in the battles of life.
"Truly this is a grief, and I must bear it," wrote Jeremiah. He did not complain about it—he accepted his disappointments and let God use them for his good and for the glory of God.
Wiersbe, W. W. (2003). The bumps are what you climb on. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker.
--
Regards,
Ryan Chia
It is not so much the case that God has a mission for his church in the world,
as that God has a church for his mission in the world.
Mission was not made for the church; the church was made for mission—God's mission.
From The Mission of God by Chris Wright
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