Early one Christmas morning when I was a young girl, I ran to the living room where I knew the gifts from Santa would be ready for myself and my 2 brothers. As I entered the room, one thing grabbed my attention right away. There was an adorable stuffed monkey sitting on the handle bars of a new bike. I ran for the monkey. I knew he would be a good friend of mine and share tea parties and stories from my favorite books. As I squeezed him and squealed, my parents interrupted my moment to tell me that the monkey was not intended for me but rather my brother. How could that be? It was love at first sight! Surely my brother would not be such a good friend to this cuddly little animal as I would be.

It took a bit to console me and redirect my attention to other gifts. As my parents pointed out that Zippy the monkey was on a boy’s bike , which was also for my brother. No I had not noticed it was a boy’s bike, only the lure of this precious little creature. I fought back disappointment which was eventually replaced with joy and excitement about the new things that were intended just for me.

Disappointment is a gift

This reminds me of how it is with God sometimes. Often, we run toward the things that catch our eye. These are the things that we are sure will make us happy. We are just running for the prize but when the prize disappears right before our eyes, disappointment settles in.

This disappointment is hard to swallow but it’s actually a gift from God. It’s His way of asking us to redirect our attention and focus on the things He is calling us to. While a change in direction when we’ve been so focused can be difficult, it’s key to our emotional and spiritual health.

Seek Him

Whether it’s a day of disappointment or a season of disappointment, seeking God during those times will lead us to the many blessings he has in store for us. Remember God is a good, good father. He knows what is best for us. He helps us sort through the shiny things that can get our attention. God is faithful and has blessings for each one of us if we will just seek Him.