Disappointment may be a big part of life, but we never really get used to it, do we? Even the more cynical among us whose expectations are low sometimes discover they were not low enough.
The Bible has many stories of disappointment. Joseph dreamed he was headed for glory, but his life took several turns for the worse before he made it. Jacob awoke to Leah, not Rachel. Naomi was crushed by the losses of her husband and sons in Moab. Samuel was often disappointed by Saul, and even John the Baptist was disappointed in Jesus, sending to ask Him if He was the Messiah.
What do believers do with these moments of disappointment? How do we handle them? One way is to turn cynical, and mistrust everything and everyone. That certainly is not a faith response. Another way is to keep your expectations high and continue to be regularly disappointed by everything and everyone. That is not a wise response.
My own way of handling them is to try not to be too surprised by them and take them in stride. After all, we live in a fallen world, in a culture in rebellion against God, full of sinners (forgiven and unforgiven) who continually are letting one another down. And remember that while unmet expectations may not be part of your plan, they often are part of God’s plan for us, just as they were for Joseph, Naomi, and even John.
That is the beauty of being a Christian. You know that nothing takes your Heavenly Father by surprise, and that He is working out all things–the good, the bad, and the disappointing–for His glory and our eternal good.
So rather than turn cynical or see a unicorn behind each bush, we can learn to meet disappointment in faith, the confidence that though disappointments are many, they are temporary, and we are headed for a Heaven which will have none.
“No eye has seen,
nor ear has heard,
no mind has conceived
what God has prepared for those who love Him.”
1 Corinthians 2:9