Dealing with Disappointment

How do you handle disappointment? Do you turn to God, and ask Him to make the situation better, to make you better? Or do you turn inward, and become bitter? Our children are watching how we handle our emotions, so it should come as no surprise when we see them imitate us.

The Bible says we are to walk by faith, and not by sight. How do we do that? Maturity comes step by step, as we release the disappointments in our life to God, and learn to trust that He is refining our faith. For far too many years I let disappointments rule my life. I became emotional, but instead of dealing with my emotions, I stuffed them down inside and let them fester. All that did was let the toxic stuff—the emotions I had not sorted and dealt with—come out and damage my relationships.

Being emotionally healthy is a process, a lifelong one, in which we learn to trust God. It requires us to be honest with ourselves and tell God when we are happy, sad, joyful, mad, feeling abandoned, or just unsure. The God who created us is big enough to handle our emotional outbursts.

God wants to refine us, to remove the impurities in our hearts that lead us away from Him. Have you been walking through the Refiner’s fire lately? Do you feel melted, torn, stretched? Maybe you are happy, sad, and angry all at the same time? Then it is likely you are being refined, even now. In order to mature enough to help our children learn through their own disappointments in life, we need to let God do some refining of our own emotional state. Sometimes, our emotions only need acknowledged. At other times, we are going to need to deal with the root cause, and the side effects of them.

Riding an emotional roller coaster is draining. The good news is that God wants to fill you back up with something better than what was removed. God wants you to live a life with peace, joy, and purpose. The only way for that to happen is for your life to be filled with Jesus. Jesus wept. He also went to a wedding, healed sick people, and raised Lazarus from the dead. He showed a lot of emotions, and we should too.

Jesus modeled a life filled with prayer, service, and sacrifice. How might we learn from His example? How might we serve others in their time of need, and how might that help us overcome disappointment? How often do we turn to God and ask Him to help us sort out our conflicting emotions?  Not often enough!

Our Christian life is a journey. There are times where we move forward quickly, and other times when we feel like we will never take another step forward because the wait seems so long. Somewhere in the in-between times is where I see God do His best work in and through me. My faith grows when I wait upon Him. I learn how to trust in His goodness, and in His love.

Life will still throw disappointments my way, but I am choosing to trust God to help me learn from my disappointment, and expect something better. As my faith grows, and my trust in God grows, my daughters learn valuable lessons about trusting God through both the good times and the bad ones. I hope that as they walk in my footsteps, they find that my feet have been following Jesus. He is the Author and finisher of my faith. The world will continue to throw disappointments my way, but I know who wins this war—and I am trusting in Him for my future.

Even behind the clouds, the sun is still shining!

Carol and her husband Kurt are in their 15th year of home education. With one graduate and one high school senior, Carol writes with a practical look at the whole journey of home education. Focusing on experienced based education and frugal ways to teach and learn well, Carol offers encouragement that anyone, even working moms, can homeschool successfully. Carol writes for her local newspaper, the TOS Homeschool Review Crew, and reviews books for several Christian Publishers. You can find her love of nature, field trips, and lifelong learning on her blog: Home Sweet Life.