I was supposed to be with my sister and mother for Thanksgiving. But now, with Thanksgiving only two days away, it didn’t look like that was going to happen. I was sick, and even if I recovered by tomorrow, I wouldn’t feel strong enough to make the long drive.
Disappointment didn’t even begin to describe what I felt. Not only would I not be with family, but because of illness, I also couldn’t even get together with friends. This was looking to be a terrible Thanksgiving. I started feeling sorry for myself big time.
Okay, so I knew what I was supposed to do. Turn to the Lord.
I knew Proverbs 3:5— Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding . . .
And I knew all the all the sayings that stem from that verse:
“God’s plans will always be more beautiful and greater than all your disappointments.”
"Disappointments are God’s appointments.”
“Expectation is the root of all heartache.”
“When you release expectations, you are free to enjoy things for what they are instead of what you think they should be.”
Right. They weren’t helping.
Then I read this: Disappointment can reveal your true heart. How a person reacts to not getting what he wants tells others if his faith is based on God or on God delivering the goods. And the writer’s examples were Job and David.
Job lost livestock, servants, family, and health—one right after the other. Disappointment? Despair more likely. But that wasn’t Job’s response. He worshipped. David lost his son despite his prayers and fasting but didn’t blame God or rail against Him. He worshipped.
Yes, I missed out on a day or two with family and friends, but only in person. FaceTime, texts, phone calls —all allowed me to be with those who meant the most to me. And I know that my disappointment was so minor compared to what some people were dealing with this Thanksgiving season.
But my solitary Thanksgiving did serve as a vivid reminder that while the world can dish out disappointments by the shovelful, God will never disappoint. That is definitely worthy of worship.
Disappointment didn’t even begin to describe what I felt. Not only would I not be with family, but because of illness, I also couldn’t even get together with friends. This was looking to be a terrible Thanksgiving. I started feeling sorry for myself big time.
Okay, so I knew what I was supposed to do. Turn to the Lord.
I knew Proverbs 3:5— Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding . . .
And I knew all the all the sayings that stem from that verse:
“God’s plans will always be more beautiful and greater than all your disappointments.”
"Disappointments are God’s appointments.”
“Expectation is the root of all heartache.”
“When you release expectations, you are free to enjoy things for what they are instead of what you think they should be.”
Right. They weren’t helping.
Then I read this: Disappointment can reveal your true heart. How a person reacts to not getting what he wants tells others if his faith is based on God or on God delivering the goods. And the writer’s examples were Job and David.
Job lost livestock, servants, family, and health—one right after the other. Disappointment? Despair more likely. But that wasn’t Job’s response. He worshipped. David lost his son despite his prayers and fasting but didn’t blame God or rail against Him. He worshipped.
Yes, I missed out on a day or two with family and friends, but only in person. FaceTime, texts, phone calls —all allowed me to be with those who meant the most to me. And I know that my disappointment was so minor compared to what some people were dealing with this Thanksgiving season.
But my solitary Thanksgiving did serve as a vivid reminder that while the world can dish out disappointments by the shovelful, God will never disappoint. That is definitely worthy of worship.
RSS Feed