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The year of the apprentice, week 2
What Do Mature Christians Really Look Like? Week 2
Starter for Ten
Briefly discuss in your group, any ways in which you have been conscious this week of the Father’s love in your life. You may want to use these brief testimonies in your opening prayers of thanksgiving as you focus in on the wonderful love of God.
Session Two: Mature Christians ….. choose not to take offence easily.
I believe that choosing to take offence is one of the most destructive and harming habits in the Christian church, and is one I personally have to guard against. Why do we get so offended? Because we fail to understand how to process disappointment. There are a variety of examples in scripture on this issue, but there are 2 fundamental and universal points about disappointment:
- Disappointment affects us all
In my sermon I outlined some of the ways we can become disappointed; they are myriad.
Discuss (perhaps in pairs first, then as a group) any issues that have cropped up in your life recently that have caused you disappointment. You might find it helpful to write these down so that you can offer them to God as part of the worship at the end of the session.
2. We can turn disappointment into either offence or growth
I passionately believe that disappointment can be processed into something redemptive and victorious, and that it needn’t lead to offence. God gives us resources to choose life, even when we’re tempted otherwise:
‘The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted (or disappointed), He will show you a way out so that you can endure (1 Cor. 10:13 NLT).
Paul Billheimer, in his book ‘Don’t Waste Your Sorrows’, says “… it is our response to disappointment that either hurts us or helps us. The eternal nature of a thing is not in the thing itself, but in our reaction to it. The disappointing circumstances will pass, but one’s reaction to them will release a moral and spiritual deposit that will last forever.” (Father Heart of God, p129)
Two Biblical Examples of Biblical Characters Attempting to Process Disappointment:
a) John The Baptist
The bible tells us that John was a great man of God, a real hero of the faith, a fearless prophet, and one who prepared the way for Jesus. But he had a failing, in that he chose disappointment to become offence.
Read Luke 7:18-23 and reflect on v23 that says “… blessed is he who is not offended because of Me” (NKJV)
b) King David
2 Samuel 6 tells the story of the moment in Israel’s history when David, the young king, ensured the return of the Ark to Jerusalem. It was a time of great unity, great celebration and widespread worship (2 Sam 6:5) yet, at the point of seeming victory, disaster strikes when Uzzah, one of David’s right-hand men, is struck down dead. Imagine how David must have felt. So how does he process disappointment?
i He seeks the Lord (2 Sam 6:8 ff.)
ii He worships the Lord (vv14 and 17 ff)
In the 3 long months when the Ark is in Obed-Edom, he has plenty of time to mull over his response, but he chooses to sacrifice burnt offerings and fellowship offerings (v17), to dance before the Lord with all his might (v14), and to celebrate before the Lord, being accused of being ‘undignified’ (v22).
Reflect together on how seeking God in worship can help you deal with disappointment redemptively.
Ministry and Prayer
Some ideas to consider:
- Offer to God your disappointments in the context of worship
- Consider ways in which your own will needs to be aligned to the will of God
- Give thanks to God that he empowers you to deal with disappointment in a godly way