Dealing with disappointment ...

Savannah is in a state of disappointment right now. We offered both of the kids an incentive reward for reading books this summer and she has earned her $10 prize. The problem is, she has decided that she would like a small suitcase for her prize (btw -we are thrilled that she is not looking for yet another stuffed animal!)

It has come down to her frustration and disappointment because:
1. we can't find the perfect one
2. when we do find the perfect one, it is in a set of 3 and 3 times the amount of her prize
3. we can't afford to shop at every conceivable place finding the perfect one (we are a little remote here in AL and shopping is a ways away)
4. the vintage bag found on ebay is really not what she would want, but she is getting desperate!

So, hence, I am the deliverer of disappointment for her. Each day, she asks if we can go shopping - most days, the answer is "no". It is hard for me to continue to be the one who disappoints her, but I also know that she needs to learn some characteristics like patience, being content with what we do have, skills in making a good choice for a purchase (not just buying something because you want to buy something), etc.. (Hee - I guess I am also still a work in progress, too :)
Yesterday I was thinking about how that scenario might relate to our Heavenly Father. Does it hurt him to say no to us over and over? We fervently pray for things that we so desperately want and He answers with a "no" or worse yet - doesn't seem to answer at all. Can we trust Him and His plan even if it doesn't look the way we want it to? Can we wait on Him and His timing?

One little line from a poem by Amy Carmichael that I copied in the front of my Bible a long time ago came to mind. "The hope no disappointments tire" - continue to hope, even through the disappointments.

Here is the full poem (my sister, Teresa, first brought it to my attention)

From prayer that asks that I may be
Sheltered from winds that beat on Thee,
From fearing when I should aspire,
From faltering when I should climb higher,
From silken self, O Captain, free,
Thy soldier who would follow Thee.

From subtle love of softening things,
From easy choices, weakenings,
Not thus are spirits fortified,
Not this way went the Crucified,
From all that dims Thy Calvary,
O Lamb of God, deliver me.

Give me the love that leads the way,
The faith that nothing can dismay,
The hope no disappointments tire,
The passion that will burn like fire,
Let me not sink to be a clod:
Make me Thy fuel, Flame of God.

And these incredible words from Romans 5:1-8 (emphasis mine - I've always wanted to write that!)

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.
You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Blessings!
Shirley

(side note: on the funny side, I knew Teresa liked this poem, so I cross-stitched it on a wall hanging for her. I didn't realize it until much later that I had misspelled disappointment! She wouldn't and still won't let me fix it - no wonder I remember that line so well :)