Disappointments plague our life paths. We experience varying degrees from different causes, but we all carry them. Walking along unaware, they creep up as silent shadows, until we are overtaken. Other times, we receive warnings of impending trouble, but before we react and redirect, we find ourselves caught in their grip. Or they come as split-second calamities flashing across our path, and we stare in horror at the destruction left behind.

• A bitter betrayal
• A dreadful diagnosis
• Painful rebellion of a child
• Rejection
• A lost job
• A life-altering accident
• Financial calamity
• An empty marriage
• An empty nursery
• Empty dreams 

Disappointments are dealt to us by the hand of another, as a result of decisions we have made, or because we live in a fallen world, prone to decay and disease, leaving all vulnerable to their sting.

Responding to life’s disappointments, we slip into discouragement. Depression and despondency taunt us. 

“This is not the way it was supposed to be”, we cry out. “This is not what I imagined. This is not what I had planned. This isn’t fair. I don’t deserve this.”

So what are we to do? How are we to deal with disappointments that come into our lives?  

The antithesis of disappointment and discouragement is hope. And its strength rests in the object of our hope.

We try placing our hope in ourselves and our abilities. Yet, despite our gallant efforts to be strong and healthy, our bodies weaken, break and fall victim to disease and cancers. Our well thought-out plans and hard-earned securities threaten to crumble and dissipate; our earthly treasures vulnerable to destruction and corrosion. We have no power to save ourself.

So we look to the world’s offerings and veneer wisdom for hope. Bookshelves fill with self-help techniques and memes clutter our desks which inspire for a moment, but lacking depth, they uproot in the harsh winds of life. How many of us have put our trust in a person, only to be shaken when they fall short of our expectation. (Psalm 146:3-4)

At last, we put our hope in God. The hope of the believer is not unfounded optimism. It is not wishful thinking. Biblical hope is an absolute, alert expectation, based on the love of God. (Psalm 33:18) True hope cannot be conjured up by our effort, but is God’s gift through His Spirit. (Romans 5:5) We can stand firmly upon hope rooted in God in times of disappointment and discouragement.

“When our hope is in God, it cannot turn to dust and ashes.
When our hope is in God, it cannot be disappointed.
When our hope is in the love of God, it can never be an illusion,
for God loves us with an everlasting love backed by an everlasting power.”
– William Barclay

Our hope in God embodies both present and future. We hold tight to a present hope because of the living power of God, active in us and for us. No matter our present circumstances, with God there is always hope for a brighter future. “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11

Godly hope also contains a forward focus. With firm confidence and assurance, we anticipate Christ’s return and our eternal destination. Even when the enemy deals his final blow of death, we uphold a fiery, living, expectant hope of an eternity spent with God in His glorious, re-creation of a new heaven and a new earth.

This solid chest of hope, formed and purified in the blazing furnace of God’s love, safely stores all your “treasures in the hard”. Hope is the soothing ointment for your disappointment and discouragement. Hope is the banner that waves in the face of difficult blows and downheartedness. Through hope, your strength will be renewed, your joy will return, your wailing will turn to dancing. (Psalm 30:11)

May His hope shower upon you today, filling you with joy and peace, stayed by the knowledge that our God is good and He is for us. Blessed be His name.

“But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
They will run and not grow weary,
They will walk and not be faint.”
Isaiah 40:31

“The Lord is good to those whose hope is in Him,
To the one who seeks Him.”
Lamentations 3:25

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him,
So that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Romans 15:13

Celeste Horrocks, Unsplash