Disappointment

     There are times when we are disappointed and times when we are the disappointment.  Expectations and regrets fuel both and are habitually involved in our daily lives.  Here is the definition of disappointment:

Disappointment

Disappointment is the feeling of dissatisfaction that follows the failure of expectations or hopes to manifest. Similar to regret, it differs in that a person who feels regret focuses primarily on the personal choices that contributed to a poor outcome, while a person feeling disappointment focuses on the outcome itself. It is a source of psychological stress. The study of disappointment—its causes, impact, and the degree to which individual decisions are motivated by a desire to avoid it—is a focus in the field of decision analysis, as disappointment is, along with regret, one of two primary emotions involved in decision-making.

     Disappointment can be either positive or negative.  Being your own person can be very fulfilling and still leave those around you disappointed in your not achieving or being what they think best.  Still, you have to be yourself.  Becoming a Christian is disappointing to many as their belief system is different that what you have embraced.  You, by making an individual decision, are not disappointed by God in his deliverance from this world we live in.  Disappointment surfaces with regrets.  BUT there is also exhilaration in knowing you have made a decision.
     Living up to expectations of the world, friends, family, and even our enemies can be frustrating and unfulfilling.  Living up to the expectations of the Lord are quite another thing.  The expectations of the first group are "past" orientated but living up to the expectations of the Lord are future orientated.  We are pulled, as Christians, back and forth over this line in the sand.  By making the decision to focus forward we are a disappointment to the world, friends, family, and even our enemies as they want us to focus on their world.  It's a matter of where we decide to be a disappointment to the world and be a blessing to the world by sharing Jesus.  
     We will face disappointment both positive and negative as we live here on earth.  Somewhere I will offend someone and there will be disappointment.  We will face being a disappointment to God when we stray from the path that brings life.  Somewhere in the Christian world I will disappoint someone over my faith.  Disappointment can be a catalyst for change or a prison to anyone captured by it's destructive force.  It's a choice we make on a daily basis.  
     Remember, it's always your choice.