“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour”
1 Peter 5:8 KJV

 

You have an enemy who would love to destroy you. But don’t worry – because greater is Jesus in you than the devil or anything in the world (1 John 4:4). This verse says that the enemy is looking to see who he can devour. That means that he can’t just devour anyone. He doesn’t have free rein in your life – unless you allow him. If we resist him and his attacks he has to flee (James 4:7), but if we accept his attacks we allow him to come and steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10). We accept his attacks when we don’t resist him; passivity is an invitation for him to come and bring destruction. I believe that one of the ways that we accept his attacks is by indulging in disappointment. Your disappointment may be 100% justified, giving you every right to be disappointed, but every minute that you wallow in disappointment and self-pity you are allowing the enemy to hold you back from moving forward in the purposes of God. If you want to keep moving forward in the purposes of God to fulfil your destiny, then you can’t afford to indulge in disappointment; you need to forget the things which are past and start looking to what lies ahead.

“Brethren, I count not myself yet to have laid hold: but one thing I do, forgetting the things which are behind, and stretching forward to the things which are before. I press on toward the goal unto the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 3:13-14 ASV

 

Paul isn’t telling us to forget everything in the past. The Bible encourages us to remember the good things that God has done. There are some things that we should purposefully remember, and then some things that we should purposefully forget! If we fail to forget the disappointments of the past we will fail to embrace what God has for us today. We need to choose to let go and move on. If something upset you 5 minutes ago, it’s already in the past, and every second that you don’t let go you are allowing the enemy to hold you in captivity. The longer you linger in grief and disappointment the more opportunity the enemy has to bring destruction and the more difficult you make it for yourself to move on. We need to learn to forgive others when they disappoint us, and move forward in love. And we also need to learn to forgive ourselves when we disappoint ourselves. It’s important to forget about things which bring guilt, condemnation and shame in our lives – especially since the Lord has forgiven us (Romans 8:1; Hebrews 10:17).

 

Wallowing in disappointment can bring on increased stress and can even lead to health issues, but the biggest problem is that it will prevent you from enjoying what God for you today and hinder you from moving forward in His purposes. So, how do we move on from disappointment? Firstly, it’s important to remember that in light of eternity, it’s not the end of the world. And then one of the ways we move on is by taking our focus off of the situation and placing it onto what lies ahead! Focus on the good things God has done and is doing; focus on and be thankful for the many blessings you have and for the prosperous future filled with hope that God has planned for you! (Jeremiah 29:11)