Disappointment...

Every life is rife with unfulfilled expectations.  It is hard to accept disappointment, especially in big things.  When we fail to get that job, buy that house, get that date - it hurts.  But the biggest disappointment of all is when someone we thought we knew well, someone we counted on to have our best interests at heart, lets us down.  Failed marriages, broken friendships, cracked family relationships - all bring a unique suffering into our hearts.  Each person, no matter their status, is subject to the whims of others, and will feel the pain of heartbreak and rejection.  It is part of the human experience, and no one escapes the sting.

Research has shown a heart can actually be broken, damaged by the stress of a failed relationship.  I believe it.  My heart has hurt so badly that I couldn't breathe at times.  Betrayal attacks all the emotions at once, leaving a devastation that is hard to overcome.  The closer you are to someone, the deeper the cut when they let you down.

But God has his plan, and sometimes, the lessons we learn in the midst of great pain are the ones we need to move forward in our lives.  It is too easy to float along, unquestioning, even when we know we should do something different.  Sometimes it takes a great disappointment to force us to do what we should have done already.

I have often said I find God at the end of my rope.  When I feel like I am hanging on by my fingernails, God is there to lift me up into something better, if I hold on tight and patiently wait.  Without the disappointment forcing a change, I may not have had the courage to find that new path, and would have missed out on some of the best things that have happened in my life.

One of my favorite Bible verses is Jeremiah 29:11.

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "Plans to prosper you, and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and future."

Today I am grateful for the lessons of disappointment.  The promise that there is a bigger plan, something better on the horizon, if we have faith and allow God to work his will in our life, has never failed me.

Dear Lord, thank you for allowing the disappointments of my life to show me my need to depend on you alone.  Amen.