How many people walk around feeling like they've disappointed their parents? How many of you feel like you could never quite live up to expectations?

Do you often feel like a disappointment?

If living according to God's design (intersecting with your destiny) is a divine appointment, then its opposite must be living as a disappointment.

A lot of people quote Jeremiah 29:11, "I have it all planned out - plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for."

They hope against hope that it's true for them even as their life seems to point toward the opposite.

"Oh God, let that be true for me," we pray, feeling like maybe he has forgotten us. Maybe in fact, our lives disappoint him just as we've disappointed others.

High expectations are a double-edged sword. They can elevate you and help you get to a place you might never otherwise aspire to. It's a powerful thing when someone believes in you, seeing you as better than you see yourself.

But continually fall short and you can live as a big fat disappointment. You become a walking self-fulfilling prophecy.

• You expected good grades and were just average.
• You expected a good job and you had to settle.
• You expected a happy marriage and you got divorced.
• You expected an exciting life and you live a hum drum one.

Whatever someone else thinks or says about you, you never quite measure up.

As parents, our high expectations can get confused with our unconditional love for our kids. God's message should be our own, "You can never disappoint me."

I think he's trying to get a message across to us that sounds like this: "I made you this way for a reason. I love you just as you are."

We need to see each other and ourselves as he does. It's a wonderfully freeing message to give and receive.