Sunday 19 May 2024

When I Feel...I Let God Down



Two weeks ago we had a look at "When I Feel... Let Down By God." For our extra week in May, I thought it might be helpful to take a look at the reverse of that statement and go through the process of, "When I Feel...I Let God Down."

If you feel like you've disappointed God with your words or actions, please know you're not alone. It's inevitable that we'll all feel like we've failed our Saviour or not represented Him well at some point in our walk with Him. Thankfully, nothing takes Him by surprise and He knew what He was getting when He called us by name into His family. Our Saviour is gracious and patient.

I pray these verses and points for reflection can encourage us today to draw close to His Throne and grow spiritually through these circumstances. God bless you, love Lucy x

"When I feel I failed my Saviour and my conduct let Him down,
When I feel my words were not deserving of the Christian crown,
When I feel He’s disappointed and I’m filled with deep regret,
Help me in that moment Lord and may my spirit not forget.

Let me not forget Your promise, though I feel I’ve brought disgrace,
May my soul remember swiftly, I am loved and saved by grace.
Rescued not through deeds nor actions, no good workings of my own.
Knowing I have been redeemed by Jesus Christ and Christ alone.

May this reassure my spirit as I come with humble heart.
Penitent in prayer, I rest in knowing this is where to start.
Drawing close to You my Saviour, keep me ever in Your will.
Though You know my faults and flaws, I praise You for You chose me still.

Help me use this lowly moment, may it serve to clearly show
Lessons You would have me learn and where my faith still needs to grow.
Teach me through this situation, quicken me and use this time.
Smooth away my roughened edges, sharpen me in things divine!

Bring a comfort to my spirit, raise me up as times before.
Take my hand and lead me on Your path of righteousness once more.
May this prove to make me stronger as I walk with You again.
Thank You for the endless love of Jesus Christ, my faithful Friend."


Ephesians 2:4-10
“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.  For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”

Psalm 51:1-4
“Have mercy upon me, O God,
According to Your lovingkindness;
According to the multitude of Your tender mercies,
Blot out my transgressions. 
Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
And cleanse me from my sin.
For I acknowledge my transgressions,
And my sin is always before me.
Against You, You only, have I sinned,
And done this evil in Your sight—
That You may be found just when You speak,
And blameless when You judge.”

Psalm 51:117
“O Lord, open my lips,
And my mouth shall show forth Your praise.
For You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it;
You do not delight in burnt offering.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit,
A broken and a contrite heart—
These, O God, You will not despise.”


Heart Check

Do I feel like I’ve let God down with my words or actions recently? Have I misrepresented God in some way and feel He must be angry or disappointed with me?
Is there someone I need to apologise to or a situation I should seek reparation in?

There are many reasons we might feel we’ve let God down in life. Perhaps we’ve lost our temper and said unkind words in the heat of the moment. Maybe we clammed up with fear or embarrassment when an opportunity arose to share the Gospel and now we feel wracked with guilt. Perhaps we’re feeling like a failure because we’ve been living with such a spirit of apathy and indifference towards the unbeliever that we’ve lost our saltiness as a Christian.

Whatever may make us feel like a failure before God, it’s good to remember that Jesus is more interested in who we are than what we do for Him. It’s also important to recall in these times that there’s a big difference between conviction and condemnation.
Conviction of wrong-doing comes from the Holy Spirit to help guide us, draw us closer to Jesus and get us back in line with the things of God.
Condemnation however, is straight from the pits of hell and is used by the devil to pull us further away from our Saviour. It’s vital that we know the difference between the two and can recognise which one it is that we’re feeling.

If I’m feeling condemned today, may my heart find peace in standing on the truth of God’s Word which tells me I am still loved and accepted by God, even on my worst day. May any feelings of condemnation be cast off as I remember that as a Christian, I am a beloved child of God and nothing I do or fail to do will change this status.

If I’m feeling convicted by the Holy Spirit about something, may I be open and willing to come before God’s Throne in repentance today, knowing that I come before a gentle and compassionate Saviour who understands my weaknesses.
The Bible says in the book of Psalms that before a word is on our tongue, God already knows it and also that He knows our going out and our coming in.

I think it’s so comforting to consider that Jesus chose us, already knowing everything about us and knew exactly what He was getting when He called us into His family. Nothing about these situations in our lives is a surprise to Him. He already knew what the outcome would be and allowed this to happen, not to reveal anything to Him but to show us what was in our hearts. May we be able to rest knowing we are loved and covered by His perfect grace this day. May we also be willing to use these situations in our lives to conform us into the image of Christ and grow, by His grace as we walk with Him each day.