I want to show you a picture which - if you are a South African sports fan - will probably cause you to die a little bit in your soul!
It's the 1999 cricket World Cup semi-final. South Africa are on their way to victory, Lance Klusener was our great hero, smashing the Aussies all over the place.
With 4 balls remaining we need 1 run to win. Donald tried for a single that wasn't there, gets sent back by Klusener, and he nearly gets run out and ruins it all.
The next ball, Donald is scared to run, and this time Klusener calls for a run that wasn't there… Donald stays his ground, starts running far too late…
Gets run out.
Here you see the disappointment in his body language as SA lose the game, and he knows the blame will all be placed on him.
The Weight of Disappointment
Cricket fans around the world still talk about this game. Why didn't Donald run? South Africa was crushed by this disappointing defeat, and Allan Donald in particular struggled to get over it. He felt a tremendous guilt, as if he was holding the whole country's disappointment on his shoulders!
I watched an interview with him years later, and he spoke of going to a psychologist to try and deal with this disappointment and guilt. The technique they used to help him come to terms with this defeat was called flooding. Donald sat and watched the footage of this moment over and over and over… until he became desensitised to it.
Although, watching that interview with him, he still seemed very hurt just talking about it.
He was trying to deal with his disappointment and defeat, but I think there is a better way! Flooding your mind - not with the disappointment, but with your Saviour, who redeems all disappointment and brings good out of even the worst things - that is what will help you to deal with disappointment.
Perfect Peace for a Disappointed Heart
Isaiah 26:3 says this: "You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you." (Isaiah 26:3)
Don't fix your mind on the disappointment. Fix it on God and trust in Him.
Then you will discover the prefect peace that comes from Him, even in the midst of disappointment.
Paul warns Timothy about teachers who love quarrels about words, and the warning matters even more in the age of social media. Before you share, forward or follow anything this week, ask whether it points you to Jesus or simply stirs up strife.