Good morning my friends, and Happy Valentine's Day.
I am sitting at my kitchen counter this morning, with my little pink and gold mug full of hot coffee, trying to stay warm and positive.
Yep, you read that right - positive.
I don't know about you, but I'm getting tired of trying to make it work - okay, make everything work, all the time.
The County taxes went up. My homeowner's insurance went up. My mortgage payment increased $200. The basement pump is broken. The fence is falling down, and my yard now looks like Sanford and Son's backyard.
It just keeps piling on and on and on. I'm exhausted. I'm not sleeping through the night. I just wonder, "God, when does the hamster wheel end and I get some peace? When do I get to stop spending money on life and start spending it on others?"
And, a lot of times - our own personal woes with money, work, and staying afloat bleed into our own self-pity of being disappointed with others.
I can personally count on one hand - and probably two if I thought about it long and hard enough - the women around me who have been disappointed in the men in their lives. Affairs, mental health issues, abandonment, and marriage & family commitment issues are just a few of the hurdles these women have faced.
It's not surprising our stress levels are high, that we are developing emotional scars, and that we are losing trust in other humans.
I, too, struggle with trust issues. Our past paths in life create scars in our hearts that blur our outlook on both our current and future paths. All the women I am thinking about this morning are strong Christians, who have profound faith in God. Yet, we all still struggle with being disappointed with someone in our lives.
As I sat here this morning, after another night of restless sleep and worry, I opened my laptop to see what God had for me. I read this. It really hit home and opened my mind to the reminder that I am not alone at being disappointed in people. We all struggle with this one thing.
The key to remember - I believe - is to not let the devil see it and capitalize on it. He relishes in our failures. He delights in diverting us off God's path. So, to my girls this morning - I see you. I believe this devotion was for you.
I hope it touches you and reminds you - like it did me - that we must grieve; we must show God our tears and/or our anger; and we must accept that people fail, but God never will!
I see you. I love you. Embrace today - Valentine's Day - remembering that the greatest Valentine of all was Jesus and the gift of LOVE he gave us on that bitter, bitter Friday afternoon. That give of LOVE redeemed us all. YOU ARE WORTHY and not forgotten!
When People Let You Down
Disappointment feels like a heavy rock sinking to the bottom of my spirit—especially when others disappoint or deceive me. Often I ignore my disappointment, shut it in a box and hope the lid holds. Sometimes I gloss it over with a quick, “People will let you down, but God never will.” True, but does this really help me process the hurt?
One morning, I poured out my sadness, anger and disappointment to God about a close relationship. As the tears slipped down my face, I begged for an answer: What do I do with this? Show me. I’ll do it because what I’ve been doing is not working.
In my spirit, Jesus said, “Grieve.”
Really? I questioned. I remembered that Jesus knew disappointment—Peter’s denial, Judas’s betrayal and the disciples falling asleep during his anguish before his crucifixion (see Matthew 26). Jesus understood my pain.
So I cried, feeling every ounce of the disappointment. I told God all the things I wished were different, all the things I thought this person had done wrong, and what I wished this person would change.
After the winds of grief subsided, I was done. Grieving was the bridge I had to cross to move beyond the disappointment. On the other side, I could embrace the relationship for what it was, not what it wasn’t.
Only after we’ve allowed ourselves to grieve will we know how to respond in the way God wants. We may need to talk to the person who disappointed us or get godly counsel. We may need healthy boundaries or to just let it go.
Once we’ve completed those steps, the words “People will let you down, but God never will” will be comforting, not empty.
By Melanie Chitwood
2 Corinthians 1
3Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 5For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ.
