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Disappointment is a Divine Appointment

We all get disappointed....don't we?  Something doesn't quite turn out the way that it was planned.  Maybe a job doesn't go how it was supposed to go.  Perhaps a person wrongs you or uses you.  Sometimes, the worst disappointment is in yourself and your own missteps.  Where does this disappointment come from?  As I was thinking about it, to me it comes because I look to the future expecting an outcome based on the information at hand.  Disappointment's root is the predetermination of an outcome, mixed with the desire for what you expect.  In scripture we can clearly see that God has His hand on every happening, every occurrence, every single second of all existence, and how He has used His creation for His will.  There are many stories in the Bible in which you see God's promises fulfilled.  Look at Noah, Moses, Abraham, Sarah....the list goes on and on.  So if we take in all this information that God's promises ALWAYS are fulfilled, and we know that our God wants the best for His will and for us, then why is it that we still get disappointed?  We get disappointed because we are focused on our will and our wants instead of what God wants.  We are preoccupied with our will and not His will.  Disappointment can be either a tool of the enemy or it can be a time in which you can pivot and focus your attention on God.  Let's dive into the two types of disappointment: Inward and Outward. 

Often times our disappointment will come from the shortfalls of others.  A person didn't do what they said they would do, or maybe they treated you in a way that was not expected.  This is a very difficult thing to discuss as I am very lucky in that I was raised by a loving family that helped me grow in every way possible.  For many others though there were different ways of growing up in which the people that were supposed to help you, love you, and raise you, didn't.  This outward disappointment can facilitate the enemy's strategy of saying you are owed this, but you're not getting it because the world is against you.  The enemy loves to turn outward disappointment towards yourself, either by saying that you deserve something, or by depreciating your own self and saying that you are not worthy of anything good in your life.  This is so false, yet I know of many people that are in this trap.  A very simple question that you can ask if you are feeling this way is:  How is God working in my experiences right now for His glory?  If you can't see God's hand in your circumstances, good or bad, then you are in the enemy's trap. 

The second type of disappointment is an inward one.  This is what is the most dangerous and I'd say the place in which you need to be the most aware.  Inward disappointment is the condemnation you have on yourself for you iniquities and shortfalls.  Through the blood of Jesus Christ, we know that there is no condemnation, but rather conviction that turns our focus onto the most high: Jesus.  The enemy will try and tell you that you are not good enough, pretty enough, wealthy enough, and even faithful enough to follow Jesus, and so you must just quit.  This is false!  You are so worthy!  You are so wanted and worthy that Jesus died for you and all your sin: past, present, and future!

The enemy wants to use disappointment to make you think about yourself, while God wants to use disappointment to focus your eyes on Him.  We must deny ourselves to be closer to God.  We get discouraged when we see fruit lacking in our lives and we think that by adding ornaments to our branches that we will be happier.....but we are not getting to the root.  The only way to eliminate disappointment is to go to the source, the root, the One whom which we are made in the image of:  Jesus. 

James 3:16 "For where envy and self seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there."

Proverbs 14:14: "The backslider in heart will be filled with his own ways, but a good man will be satisfied from above."

Look into your life and see where disappointment comes from.  I promise you this that if you are focused on the root, on the source, on Jesus completely, you will see that disappointment turn into the Divine appointment that God wants for you.  Rid your life of yourself, and replace it with His will and His purpose. 

Have a great week!

Cameron

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