Sooner or later, bad news finds all of us.

If it hasn’t yet, it will. As the years pass, people you love will face illness. Some will die. You may encounter your own medical challenges. And eventually, your own life will come to a close.

We don’t talk about this much. Yet when crisis comes — when the doctor’s voice shifts tone, when the phone call changes everything — it can feel isolating and disorienting. Facing serious illness or the reality of death is often a lonely road, even when you’re surrounded by people.

I slowly watched my 36-year-old wife walk through stage 4 cancer. For three and a half years after her diagnosis, we lived in three-month increments — scan, wait, hope, and often, more bad news. Each appointment carried the possibility of a new blow.

It happens. Disillusionment. At some point, the fire of our early enthusiasm meets the reality of life and ministry. Young leaders begin with bright eyes and bold dreams, ready to change the world—until the realization comes that ministry is about people, and people are rarely easy to change. Seasoned leaders, too, enter new roles hoping for something better, only to discover that flexibility and compatibility take more grace than expected. Disillusionment can sting—but it doesn’t have to destroy.