Disappointment!

​Have you ever been disappointed? I know the answer is YES! I do not know anyone who has not gone through some type of disappointment. 

You have longed for healing, for a job, for a baby, or for a spouse. You have faithfully and earnestly prayed for weeks and months — even years. But you are still sick, still unemployed, still childless, or still single. And you are disappointed. In fact, God disappoints you.

Disappointment comes in all sizes, doesn't it? Any time our hopes are not realized, or our expectations or desires are not fulfilled, we feel disappointed. Disappointment can be a passing emotion over a temporary loss, or it may strike powerfully when something permanently changes our lives. A major disappointment can remain within us all the time, shadowing our reactions to everything.

We all experience disappointment for varied reasons. Feeling disappointed is not a sin. How we manage it is the crucial issue. Disappointment is so common to humanity that it is difficult to choose which biblical characters best illustrate it. The Bible is full of disappointed people.

Think of the years of disappointment experienced by Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, Hannah, and Elizabeth. Month after month, year after year, they saw evidence of their childlessness. Job and Joseph had good reason to be disappointed, both in people and in God. Elijah the prophet expected the great evidence of God's power on Mount Carmel would bring revival. Instead, it only put a price on his head. He was so disappointed he asked to die.

Disappointment is a hard pill to swallow. Nobody likes it, but it is something we will face throughout our lifetime. We will face disappointment repeatedly in our lives, but how we respond to it should change.

In overcoming disappointments, it is important to keep them in perspective. Even though we cannot eliminate suffering and disappointments on this side of heaven, it can become less formidable when viewed from a different vantage point.

It is also important to remember that God did not disappoint you—life’s circumstances and people disappointed you. When something bad happens in life, it is not a time to blame God; it is a time to run to him.

Make Every Day Count!

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