Steve Fowler, June 12-13

We have all had experiences in life of being hurt, wounded, betrayed and let down. I was talking with a friend recently who was really counting on someone to run with a business idea. Seminars were being scheduled, and leaders were arriving soon to teach the latest in business principles and strategies to entrepreneurs and small business owners. The date had been set on the calendar; and two weeks before the conference, my friend discovered that his friend had not followed through and was “bailing on him.” He was very disappointed and a bit angry. I don’t blame him. The conference and seminars were cancelled, and an opportunity was lost. A friendship was also damaged.

As sure as the sun rises and sets, we will have similar experiences in the future where we are hurt and disappointed. Expectations will not be met, and those we love and befriend can cause great pain.

But, what if every potentially damaging situation was really a shortcut to an experience of Jesus? I know that sounds odd, but think about it. Instead of being wounded, what if we saw disappointing circumstances as an opportunity to become Christ-like? If you think about it, whatever we focus on we give power to. If we focus on how we have been offended, we empower the offense and bitterness takes root. If we focus on the betrayal, the wound festers. Paul wrote, “Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.” You and I can dis-empower our disappointments. Take your eyes off the negative, and you begin to dis-empower it. If you are angry and offended, it may prove that your old nature is still alive and well. We can’t treat disappointments as house guests. In the kingdom we evict “offense” through the power of forgiveness. As a spiritual exercise, you may want to make a list of your disappointments and begin evicting them one by one. Through some simple housecleaning, I know you’ll discover that to every disappointment there is an equal blessing that can be yours by sending it packing.

Steve is Lead Pastor of Salem Alliance Church and was born in Hong Kong, China. He grew up in Asia and moved to the US to attend college. After 14 years in business, Steve followed a call to pastor. He has served churches in Washington and Hong Kong and has been at Salem since 2005. He is married to Trina, has four children and one son-in-law.