Life doesn’t always go our way. Daily, we are faced with unexpected twists, turns, and events that try to discourage us and throw us off. Sometimes, it can be our own shortcomings that frustrate us. Regardless of the source, we must grow in working through disappointments.
We’re at the top of 2024, and most of us have set new year goals. If your goals are the right goals, they will challenge you and you won’t hit them all the time. That’s why they are set as goals. Our goals are our focus areas. We focus on them because we know we can do better regarding them.
Think about it. That’s what goals and growth is about. We set goals that will help us to move forward in life. We focus on growth that will make our lives better. As we set these goals and begin to focus on these keys areas, we must remember that change is a process. It won’t be an overnight accomplishment.
Understanding this will equip us to work through disappointments.
Life won’t always go our way. We won’t always make the right choice. Life isn’t perfect. We aren’t prefect. It is imperative for us to be able to cope and work through life’s imperfections.
Try these 3 tips when working through disappointments:
1. Take a moment.
When disappointed, our emotions can try to exaggerate and maximize the disappointment. Taking a moment can help us to calm down and get a different perspective. When taking a moment, we can ask ourselves questions such as: What is the lesson for me? How did I get here? What can I do differently going forward?
As we accept the situation for what it is, we can then focus on making the next best decision.
2. Adjust.
Disappointments and unexpected changes, frustrate us because they present us with a reality that we didn’t plan. Often, the biggest lesson is accepting that we are not in control. So much of our energy is spent trying to control situations and outcomes. No matter what we do, life has a way of showing us our limitations.
When we accept this, we must adjust to the current circumstance.
3. Move forward.
After we’ve taken a moment to gather ourselves and have adjusted our perspective, we must focus our energies on moving forward. Sometimes it’s a slight adjustment to our plans, other times we may have to take a completely different approach. Whatever is required, it is imperative for us to get a good attitude about it, embrace peace, and move forward.
No day is perfect, but everyday is a gift given to us from God.
One way that I like to start my day is by saying: This is a good day because You made it. Help me to rejoice and be glad in it.
It’s easy for us to approach our days based on what we have going on. In other words, we tend to find joy in our circumstances. This is a less than best approach. Instead, we want to find our joy in the Giver of the days. Then, no matter what the day may bring, we can still rejoice. I’m reminded of Philippians 4:12-13:
“I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: everywhere and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”
As you go about your day today, I pray that you grow in working through disappointments and that you find yourself doing all that Christ has called you to do. The how is found in verse 11. We must learn how to be content in whatever situation we find ourselves in [Philippians 3:11].
With love,
