Get Over It! People Will Let Us Down.

We all have a keen sense of our expectations for the people we encounter on the road of life. People close to us like family and good friends; others we work or worship with on a regular basis; and strangers who come into our lives on the freeway or in a restaurant.

 
  
Just yesterday I was stunned and crushed by a business colleague’s careless behavior that missed my expectations BY A MILE. My immediate, internal reaction was extreme disappointment. But I quickly turned to God and everything turned around.
  
I recognized that having our expectations unmet can come either BEFORE—where we fixate and obsess over how “they ought to act;” or AFTER something happens or doesn’t happen.
  
But the before or after timing does not matter.
  
Either way, we end up in the same spot facing the need to deal with our disappointment. To that end, my starting point is remembering that NONE OF US can meet the myriad expectations people have for us. Not me. Not you. Nobody.
  
But the most important step in dealing with our unmet expectations is to TRUST GOD.
  
Jesus tells us how we should act when people disappoint us. Look at his prayer from the Cross at Golgatha: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34).
  
I know from experience that applying this truth ain’t easy! And it’s impossible on our own.
  
Yes, it hurts when PEOPLE let us down. But it’s inevitable, so our attention must pivot immediately to how we respond. And that means we must run to God and get the right perspective; the right approach; and the right heart. Because JESUS will never let us down.
  
I ask God to help me respond immediately when my expectations go unmet and guide me to the right response.
  
WHAT ABOUT YOU?
  
How do YOU respond when someone lets you down?
  
“It is better to take refuge in the Lord, than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the Lord, than to trust in princes.” Psalm 111:8-9