Anointed and Disappointed

"To this end also we pray for you always that our God may count you worthy of your calling, and fulfill every desire for goodness and the work of faith with power; in order that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ." 2 Thessalonians 1:11-12 (NASB)

Today I had a hard time using the words "anointed" and "disappointed" in the same sentence. I struggled because I wonder, if we really believe we are anointed should we ever walk in disappointment? Shouldn't we look at every single situation as a stepping stone to accomplish God's plan for our lives? Sure, there are those situations that seem too far outlandish to be orchestrated by God and in some cases they are not God's plan at all but just a mess we've made for ourselves or allowed someone else to make for us. But regardless, even in those times God gives us a free will and undoubtedly - let me hear it - works all things together for good to those who love Him! Trust me when I say I have had my share of disappointment but I want to touch on the difference between being disappointed in a healthy way and a not-so healthy way.

My mom always says, "disappointment breeds resentment", and I always hate hearing her say it because 9 times out of 10 it's because I'm disappointed about something I have absolutely no control of and she can see me becoming bitter and angry over the disappointing situation. This type of disappointment is what I would consider unhealthy. It's the kind of frustration that keeps us focused on ourselves. "Oh, I just don't feel good enough...Why doesn't anything ever work out the way I intended it to....I never thought this is where I'd be in life...I hate my job, these co-workers of mine are so difficult to deal with..." If you haven't noticed, the common denominator in all of this frustration is contained in a single letter, "I"! Where does Jesus fit in with this way of thinking? We are all prone to get down like that but it's about how quick we bounce back. When you are feeling disappointed in that vein, do you seek out healthy and godly counsel, do you seek the Lord in the Word? These are signs that you are able to move your frustrations into healthy disappointments.

Disappointment in life is a 100% guaranteed part of life. No two buts about it, you will be disappointed in this lifetime but what we do with it is what counts. We read a lot in day three of our study that David did not move directly into his appointed and anointed position but yet had to push through many a disappointing situation. It took 22 years from the time of his anointing for him to take the position God had intended for him to take. "The same anointing was to empower him to...fulfill each obligation along the way...[to teach him to] submit to authority, to serve and to have faith." God does the same thing in our lives. Whatever you were created to do, anointed to do, will come to pass if you allow God to work out the details in His own timing. So many of us are wanting to jump into this thing we call anointing that we miss the anointing altogether. We don't consider the monotony of day to day living as one more day of experience to equip us for that work. I used to work at Sea Ray Boats as the front desk receptionist and at the time considered it the most mundane, boring job. I made copies, filed, answered the phone, the typical office job. Yet, I knew that this could not possibly be what God had in store for me. Each day I had to call the IKON copy guy to fix the copier. Little did I know that one day I would be teaching school and guess who always knew how to remove the jams and change the toner cartridges without waiting for the front office secretary? You guessed it! I did! You see, what I thought was boring, God had a plan. He knew one day I would be the hero of the Teacher Lounge because I knew how to change a copier toner! Sounds so silly compared to dealing with King Saul but nonetheless I still smile about that knowing how awesome and faithful my sweet Jesus is to me!

Girls, no matter where you are in life right now, count it a blessing. God knows right where you are at, He knows you better than you know yourself and if we just let go of trying to control everything that goes on around us we will flourish in that thing He calls us to - in HIS time!

I will end with a paragraph from Priscilla on Day 3: "Today I want to encourage you to commit your whole life to the Lord, especially if it looks drastically different that what you had in mind. Do not despair and become frustrated in the seasons of waiting that the Lord might allow you go through. Rather, ask him to allow your spiritual eyes to clearly see His hand..and help you to fully engage and rely on His Spirit to empower you to do what He has called you to do."