Dealing with Disappointment

This past week, I saw the following tweet come across my screen:

Billy Graham ‏@BillyGraham25 Oct
"I have never met anyone... who was strong in faith, who was ever discouraged for very long." http://ow.ly/qbrl4  #devotion

 This tweet caught my attention and resonated with me.  I followed the link and found a great deal of both wisdom and truth here in this short devotional from the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. A few excerpts stood out to me:

"Discouragement is nothing new… It is as old as the history of man"

"It comes many times when we don’t get our way, when things don’t work out the way we want them to."

There is so much truth here.  I thought about this for a while, and I cannot envision a situation where we become discouraged (excepting biological mental conditions) apart from not getting our way.  What we want may be perfectly reasonable, even noble, but discouragement results from not obtaining something we want (a thing, a relationship, love, respect, accomplishment, health, ease, etc.).  What we want may not be so noble – self-indulgence, fame, power or revenge.  I believe discouragement comes when we become convinced that we may never get what we want, and we furthermore choose to believe life cannot be fulfilling without it. 

The devotional continued:

"Discouragement is the opposite of faith…Discouragement blinds our eyes to the mercy of God and makes us perceive only the unfavorable circumstances." 

How true this is!  When we focus on what we do not have, we fail to see the gracious blessings God has already given us.  No matter how bad things may be, there is always much to be thankful for.  The article further states:

"I have never met anyone who spent time in daily prayer, and in the study of the Word of God, and was strong in faith, who was ever discouraged for very long."

I had to think about this one for a while.  Some hurts are large and the disappointment takes longer to reconcile, while other disappointments are resolved more quickly.  Regardless, I believe Graham is right.  If we truly align ourselves with our Creator and recognize that he knows better than we do, we will begin to trust him in spite of our disappointment.  Disappointment will look to faith and turn to hope. 

One thing I am certain of in life:  we are either currently experiencing difficulty or it is on the way.  No one escapes pain.  No one escapes grief.  No one escapes death.  I would by far rather live a life of faith and hope than disappointment.  I am thankful for the blessings God has given me.  I am thankful for the hope that comes from a relationship with God through Christ.  I am thankful that death does not have to be the end.  No matter what our situation at the moment, there are always reasons to be encouraged!