“There will be little rubs and disappointments everywhere, and we are all apt to expect too much; but then, if one scheme of happiness fails,human nature turns to another; if the first calculation is wrong, we make a second better: we find comfort somewhere.”
~ Jane Austen
If you were disappointed yesterday, just remember this: there is another solar eclipse in seven years.
The eclipse received a lot of hype over the past several weeks and a lot of attention in the past few days. Yesterday dawned and a lot of people were looking forward to experiencing something that happened last in 1979. A lot of people waited a lot of years to see the solar eclipse yesterday.
The only problem was no one seemed to tell Mother Nature about their excitement.
For many, the eclipse was just barely viewed because of cloud cover. The day was not bright and sunny, it was relatively dark and cloudy. There was not a good opportunity to see the eclipse. Occasionally, the sun would break through the clouds. But, for a lot of time, cloud cover was the rule.
Some people came away from the celebration dashed. They had their hopes set upon viewing the eclipse. There were disappointed and unable to be consoled. Others came away and said, “Oh well. There will be another one in seven years.” They just set aside their disappointment and began to look ahead.
There is a good analogy there to how we live our faith lives.
Some people spend a lot of time praying to God for things. They pray and pray and beg and beg and end up not getting what they wanted. Disappointed, they turn away and grumble. They are not easily consoled. They begrudge others the blessings that they have received from God. Some go so far as to give up on their relationship with God.
Others? They look at their disappointment and say to themselves, “Maybe I was asking for the wrong thing?” or “Maybe God didn’t think I should have that” or “I guess I should think of something else.” They do not let their disappointment rattle them. Rather, they look ahead at what they should do. They continue to pray and deepen their relationship with God.
How do you deal with disappointment? Do you tend to give up and quit or do you look for alternatives and look forward?
FAITH ACTION: Pray for those who have given up because of disappointment. And if you know anyone personally who has done so, do your best to encourage them today.