Last month I posted about a struggle I was facing but left the details vague. I received a few emails asking if I was okay and what was going on with me/us. It was on purpose that I didn't expand on the specifics out of respect for my husband. It's one thing for me to divulge my own personal stuff here but to put others out there without their permission is another issue altogether. I'm sorry I caused undue concern.

That being said.......I'll just say that we experienced disappointment over Trey not receiving something we both felt was a "no brainer" and well-deserved. The "powers that be" made a decision that, to us, was completely out of left field. This was well traveled territory for us but that didn't make it any easier to accept.

I remember when something like this happened a couple years ago and a friend was in the middle of a bible study on David. She reminded me of how long David served even after he was anointed to be king. He knew he was destined for greatness but he still had to "pay his dues". Last week this email came from a different friend who is in the middle of a different study on David. It was the sweetest bit of encouragement and one that applies to anyone in the midst of despair and wondering. Whether you've been passed over for a promotion, forced to take a job that you're overqualified for, sold your house and had to go back to renting, God hasn't forgotten you. What may look like a setback is usually God's provision.

This is the excerpt from Priscilla Shirer's study "Anointed, Transformed, Redeemed: A Study of David."

"In the months immediately following David's anointing, God orchestrated a shocking series of events. Instead of promotion to the position of king, David submitted to serving the one already in that position. Fully aware that God's Spirit was with him to lead God's chosen people, David served in full submission as a mere armor bearer to the king. The first step after being anointed was to serve. Often servanthood and submission mark the truest test of the anointed person. David was no less anointed by God when serving than later when he sat on the throne.

David's anointing was not merely to lead the Hebrews 22 years later. That same anointing was to empower him to walk the road to his destination and fulfill each obligation along the way. God empowered him not just to rule as king but to have patience until he sat on the throne, to submit to authority, to serve, and to have faith in God's promise despite circumstances.

What was true for David is true for you. Whatever your life entails right now--no matter how far removed it seems from what you expected--He has anointed you and divinely equipped you to not merely handle it but to thrive in it. If you can't be faithful in a little, God will not give you the larger assignment. he may want to adjust your life and character in smaller assignments to prepare you for the larger ones.

"Because we know that this extraordinary day is just ahead, we pray for you all the time--pray that our God will make you fit for what he's called you to be, pray that he'll fill your good ideas and acts of faith with his own energy so that it all amounts to something. If your life honors the name of Jesus, he will honor you. Grace is behind and through all of this, our God giving himself freely, the Master, Jesus Christ, giving himself freely." (2 Thess. 1:11-12 Msg)

During the 22 years of waiting, we don't find David longing to be king or looking for ways to rush God's timing. Even when his life was in danger at the hands of Saul, he did not wish the worst on his enemy. Instead, h continued to trust in God's best for his life and fully commit to whatever God asked of him. In fact, David's commitment to engage in what God brought into his life was precisely what equipped him for the next set of circumstances he would face. His willingness to submit to the roll of "delivery boy" for his brothers on the battlefield led him face-to-face with Goliath. David declared his preparedness to face the giant because he had faced lions and bears. Each circumstance David faced and overcame strengthened him to handle the next challenge. All of those years of service were not a waste after all. Each season was a necessary part of his development to be king."

In spite of how I might FEEL, I want to serve "in full submission to the armor bearer" while I wait for "the larger assignment."

To Him who is able to do more than we could ever ask or imagine........