Disappointment
“Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4
When my kids were little, I rejoiced in watching them develop their abilities and personalities. When they were babies, I wondered what their voices would sound like. Their laughter was pure music. I delighted in each new step of growth. They grew up strong, smart, happy, and well-rounded.
As they entered the teen years, I saw things that worried me. Attitudes they’d developed. Friendships that I wasn’t too sure would be good for them. Teachers that often filled their heads with worldly deception. Pressures, deadlines, schedules, standards, and peer culture, all originated from someplace outside our carefully crafted, safe home.
I trusted in the Lord, while keeping my parental watchful eye fixed on their continuing development. I spoke the truths of God into their lives; we attended a solid, Bible-teaching church—and I prayed.
I did all I knew to do as a Christian parent. And as those terrifying moments came when they made choices I knew would harm them, I prayed and trusted God. I always felt these things would pass. My kids would grow out of them, would lose interest. Friends would pass out of their lives, leaving my children to make godly choices as they had been taught.
To be honest, this did not happen soon enough for me. I have watched childhood bents become youthful choices, which became adult lifestyles. They are believers in God, but some are not followers of God.
The oft-quoted verse, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6) has not yet come to pass.
But I do not lose hope! My prayer life has deepened because of my concern and love for the children God gave me. I trust the promises in His Word. I know that God loves my children and is working in their lives. I have learned to tap into God’s strength to walk through my kids’ lives with them. His grace and mercy for me have become the model I live by towards them. The myriad ways He has comforted and kept me now give me hope to share with others.
What is the key to freedom from the grief and disappointment caused by loved ones who do not follow the ways of the Lord? “Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart” (Psalm 37:4).
While I wait to be given the desires of my heart, I will delight myself in the Lord.
Lord, my heart breaks sometimes when I must stand back and watch my loved ones destroy themselves. But I place all my trust in You. Help me make YOU the priority of my life, for I know that You are working to accomplish all Your perfect will. Amen.
I, too, watched my sons make some very BAD decisions as they matured and flew the nest.. I never stopped hoping in God’s word prevailing in their lives. Now decades later (sooner in some than others) in their 50’s they have all come back to the Word of God. God is true and His Word shall not fail! The journey is not over, but I am seeing the answers to prayer which is encouraging and a Blessing!
My heart broke over my kids’ choices too. Been about 10 years ⁶since they told me with trepidation, “I’m not sure I believe in God”….. they knew how I’d feel about it. They would never talk about it.
I have since learned to give the burden to God. He wants me to leave them in His hands and focus on my own walk with him. How my faith has grown. How I have grieved as I prayed for them. It has given me an inkling of God’s heart for the lost. I don’t know how to reconcile this sorrow (and shame when I see the godly walks of the kids of my peers) with the joy He wants me to have. But I know true hope and peace come from Him, not from the choices of any human being around me. His love is unfailing, and HIS faithfulness is my shield and rampart. I wait on Him and Him alone.
Thank you so much for sharing.
Both my children grew up in the Christian church, going yo AWANAs for a few years .My daughter is good with the Lord and was baptized when young . My son told me when he was younger he wasn’t sure he was saved. Then he got in trouble and told me he had read the Bible 3 times so I continue to pray that one day his heart would open to the Word of God and we could once again establish a relationship. I text him every few weeks and let him know what has gone on recently and always let him know I love him. I rarely get a message back but I know he is a child of God and trust God in that.