We may be dissapointed in life, but the Lord never lets us down!

     We are all flesh, like the grass we wither away.  We also sin away, and hurt others in this thing we call, life.  Of course as a Christian it is our duty to forgive.  After all did not Jesus forgive us of the multitude of our sins?!  But just because we forgive does not mean we forget, and forgiveness is a process.  Actually the opportunity to be hurt, to be betrayed by someone who is as close as a brother or lover gives us insight into the pain God feels.
     For example, when your trust is betrayed or you feel really hurt by a close person's actions, does it feel good to you if they just say "I'm sorry" but then continue the action?  Or by their behaviour you realize that they are not that sorry.  Being hurt makes us realize how its so important to not just say something but also follow it up with actions.  As James says "faith without actions is dead."  Well, I would add forgiveness without repentance is also dead.  Just saying "sorry" to the Lord doesn't cut it, as it wouldn't with any of us who are hurt.  But true forgiveness requires a repentant heart.  Repentance means a turning around, or literally doing an about face, fully changing the current direction of behaviour.   When someone we loves hurts us it helps us to understand how God feels when we hurt him.  How he doesn't just want us to say "sorry Lord" but He wants us do do something about it, have a repentant heart, change our direction.  This is another area where I believe Catholics have it right.  It is not just words that get us into heaven, or get us right in our relationship with others, its deeds as well, changing direction. 
     The verse I came upon this morning in devotions is Psalm 61:7 "My salvation and honor depend on God; he is my strong protector; he is my shelter."  Thank God He is there for us when others disappoint, when we get hurt.  Our salvation and honor in our life depend ultimately on Him.  There is nothing we can do that will "fix" everything in our lives, or guarantee we will be honored in our life, our family, our work.  Thank God that we do our best but ultimately our delivery into heaven, our respect in this life is in God's hands, His control.  We can rest knowing fully that He is the best lover, the best friend, the best family, who will never dissapoint.  He is our "strong protector" our "shelter."  Thank the Lord He is all these things, in an economy which seems out to destroy the middle class, where there are all the time reports of a "recovery" yet so many are out of work we can trust in God's protection, His shelter.  If our worst nightmares come true, we can't pay the bills, our homes are lost, our honor ruined, remember the Scriptures tell us Jesus didn't have a place to lay his head.  He was not honored by his own people.  We have not suffered unto death.  And actually sometimes, we just suffer from our own stupidity.  Yet, through it all, our sins, our faults, our hurts, God is our protector and our shelter.  He will always be there, giving good gifts to His children, caring for them as a gentle shepherd for the lamb He loves.