She had chosen a beautiful wedding gown, the lovely venue was reserved, she had studied her Biblical premarital workbook, and her family was happily anticipating the big day.   Then unexpectedly, she broke her engagement. One day she told her parents she was leaving for a weekend camping trip with a girlfriend.   She didn’t return home.   Immediately she fell into an abusive relationship followed by years of downward spiraling.   Have you ever been really happy, and hopeful only to be deeply disappointed and discouraged when unexpectedly evil apparently gets the upper hand? Maybe it was early election results when a traditional values candidate was in the lead only to have a champion of immorality surprisingly surpass what seemed like the sure winner. Maybe it was a disappointment closer to home like a family member who seemed to be on a steady path only to suddenly take a dive into the darkness. What should we do with deep disappointment? How do we keep looking up when clouds of discouragement, disillusionment, and sorrow hover over us?

Having our hopes dashed is part of the human experience. Adam and Eve were thrilled to welcome their firstborn son, Cain, into their family. Yet he broke their hearts with his murderous jealousy of his younger brother and his exile far from home.  After the high of being anointed by the prophet to be the next king, David must have become discouraged by the long years of waiting while the demented king hunted him down like an animal. Later, as king, David must have been cut to the heart by the haughty mockery of his wife who in the past risked her life to save his. And then the heartbreak of being betrayed by his own son who tried to usurp his throne. Joshua must have been elated to gain a decisive victory in the first battle after entering the land God promised. Yet immediately after the big win, there was a bitter defeat. What went wrong? Why does life throw such curve balls?

Since we are in the Lent season, this is an appropriate time to consider the last week of Jesus’ earthly life. If we had been in the group of Jesus’ close followers we would have rejoiced at the welcome of the large crowds that Jesus received as he entered Jerusalem for the Passover observance. The city was brimming with visitors from all over Israel and foreign countries to celebrate this holy festival and now they had come out to receive their Messiah and King. The hearts of the friends of Jesus must have swelled to witness the jubilant welcome their beloved Master received. Finally! The tide had turned and Jesus was being recognized for who he was despite the opposition of the powerful. This was what he deserved. Surely now he would take his rightful place as Deliverer and Ruler. They were seeing with their own eyes the fulfillment of prophecies that generations of the faithful had hoped to see. They had heard their grandparents speak longingly of this day. As children they had memorized God’s promises that someday the Messiah would arrive. And to think that they lived to see this happy day! Jesus would get rid of the oppressors and rule with justice forever on David’s throne. It was a euphoric experience.

They were completely unprepared for the sudden turn of events about to take place. Jesus, of course, knew exactly what he was riding into. He had repeatedly tried to prepare his disciples for the hard truth that he would be rejected and executed. But all his warnings had fallen on deaf ears. They believed the Man they had spent day and night with for the last three years was the promised Messiah. And since he was the Messiah, surely he would reign. And the sooner, the better since they would be rewarded for faithfully following him since the beginning. They had even visualized their positions of power in his kingdom. And it would all come true now that his popularity had risen. They were on the home stretch.

They couldn’t have imagined what would crash down on their Hero in a few short days. The unfair trial, the dehumanizingly cruel beatings, the heartless mockery, and the slow, painful death of the man they thought would take the reins of government and crush his opposition.
They themselves would turn out to be cowards, deniers, and weaklings. They would suffer, grieve, and doubt. Nothing was as it appeared. Jesus wasn’t going to be king, so he must not be the Messiah. They weren’t the truehearted, loyal followers they thought they were. They went from being honored to fearing for their lives. Jesus had disappointed them. They had disappointed themselves. And the crowds had disappointed them. Their world had imploded.

So what eventually brought them out from fearfully hiding in a huddle behind locked doors to fearless open-air preaching to thousands? The same thing that gives us strength and courage. They spent time with the risen Jesus and God’s Spirit enabled them to do what they couldn’t do alone.

“But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.  We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair;  persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.” 2 Corinthians 4:7-9

Life in this world has many disappointments, but our happiness doesn’t depend on good outcomes. Our happiness is wrapped up in our happy God. When we have the closeness of God, we have happiness. When God is near, we have peace. When our eyes are on God, we have hope. When we love God, we feel his love for us. When we’re obeying God, his Spirit carries us, protects us, teaches us, and comforts us. We can rise above our circumstances, heartbreak, disappointments, and regrets. Day by day we hold fast to God’s precious promises of his presence and help.  We look forward to complete happiness in the next life God is preparing for us and us for it.  Spiritual realities supersede our present physical realities. Heavenly realities give earthly realities a different perspective. Our passing troubles are bringing about never-ending splendor that is far greater than our troubles.

“So we’re not giving up. How could we! Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without his unfolding grace. These hard times are small potatoes compared to the coming good times, the lavish celebration prepared for us. There’s far more here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can’t see now will last forever.”The Message paraphrase of 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

“This is the reason why we never collapse. The outward man does indeed suffer wear and tear, but every day the inward man receives fresh strength. These little troubles (which are really so transitory) are winning for us a permanent, glorious and solid reward out of all proportion to our pain. For we are looking all the time not at the visible things but at the invisible. The visible things are transitory: it is the invisible things that are really permanent.” Phillips translation of 2 Corinthians 4:16-18