UnexpectedSýnishorn

When life doesn’t go our way—which it rarely does, and when our expectations lead to utter disappointment, we don’t always know how to recover our wonder of trusting God. Disappointment is that let-down feeling where our emotions bottom out and our faith does too. It’s a powerful destructive force that can leave us stuck in a moment through which we filter and even forfeit future experiences. It is a force that we have to face and overcome to live a life full of faith embracing the unexpected.

Jesus always walks with us through our disappointment. Through our heartaches. Leading us to recover our wonder. Leading us to something better ahead. He is the one who helps us remember that although it happened to us, it doesn’t mean it was about us. He wants us to know that disappointment is a place we pass through—never a place where we stay.

When disappointments happen repeatedly, our hearts can grow sick and our thoughts can grow dark. That’s when the enemy can move in and steal the last of our hope. That’s when doubt and unbelief can overtake what’s left of our faith.

Holding to our faith—even in the face of deep disappointment—is critical. Making God’s promises bigger than our disappointments is essential. That’s why God wants us to believe and understand that His promises don’t have expiration dates. They aren’t like passports or gym memberships. They aren’t like the condiments in the fridge or the food in the pantry. Our heavenly father has given us a book full of his promises that have no expiration dates—and he will always make good on his promises. 

Getting into his Word and letting it get into us brings our hearts back to life. Worshipping him opens the door for the Holy Spirit to encourage us and heal us so we can trust again. Learning how to change our perspective through steps like these helps us transition from fearing the unexpected to trusting God through it. 

Adapted from Unexpected: Leave Fear Behind, Move Forward in Faith, Embrace the Adventure by Christine Caine. Copyright © 2018 by Christine Caine. Reprinted with permission of Zondervan Publishing. All rights reserved.