“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding.”

 Proverbs 3:5 (NIV)

On a special occasion, my kitchen was filled with the chatter and laughter of family. It was my daughter’s birthday and we were celebrating with an ice cream party with the gang. Parents were assisting smaller children as they made the tough choices… chocolate syrup or caramel? Whipped cream? Sprinkles or no sprinkles? The scene warmed my heart as everyone came together to celebrate and reconnect with family. Plus, you never know what you might hear when you get all of us together. We like to have a good time. 

As I watched one of my youngest nephews put the finishing touches on his frozen masterpiece, my nephew said something cute, spontaneous, and philosophical as only a young child can do. As he and his dad added colorful sprinkles to his treat, he said, “Mr. Sprinkles never lets you down!” The container of sprinkles was shaped like a clown and you simply pop his hat off to shake out the sprinkles. His name of course is Mr. Sprinkles. To my nephew, the supply of finishing treats was never ending as Mr. Sprinkles was always waiting to serve. 

Yes, indeed, in his mind Mr. Sprinkles never lets you down.

But people do. 

Have you ever noticed it is generally the people closest to you that let you down or disappoint you the most? I never hear anyone say, “You know that lady behind me at the grocery store really disappointed me today.” No, it is usually the people we love, trust, value, and depend upon. Our children, spouses, siblings (relatives in general), and yes our friends. 

Sometimes the disappointment is minor. Easy to recover from and move forward. Sometimes the wound is much deeper making us wonder if we can ever move past it. 

People let us down. 

We let other people down. 

Always have. Always will. 

We are only human after all. 

Often expectations are too great for others to live up to so we create an impossible circumstance. Sometimes people make selfish destructive decisions that leave those close by reeling from disappointment. Whatever the reason, we are let down by people and we let it bring us down. Our thoughts include … “I thought I knew you better than that … If you really loved me you would be a better person … You are better than that … What were you thinking?”

The emotions run deep. Relationships are damaged – sometimes permanently. 

Let’s face it – with people we can’t just pop off their hats and shake out the good stuff. We have to deal with the good and the bad. But how? How do we do that when the hurt is so deep?

By depending on the one who truly never lets us down: Jesus.

Even Mr. Sprinkles runs out. 

Not so with Jesus. 

Put your trust in Him – All of it – He will help with the rest.

Dear Lord,

I want to place my trust in you – all of it. When I am weak and misplace that trust in the wrong things or people and experience disappointment and discouragement, I must remember that you are in control. Even when I cannot understand the why of the circumstances, I understand that you know the outcome and are working for my good. Thank you for your trustworthiness.

Amen.