Friday, April 10, 2015

Great Expectations

I had started writing a post about expectations shortly before the New Year, but somehow could never seem to complete my thoughts enough to finish it.  I’m not one for New Year’s resolutions, but I somehow felt that a new leaf had been turned coming into 2015 and it got me thinking about expectations: in life, and of the Lord. 

I was given the amazing opportunity last November to fly to Chicago for a weekend of shopping with good friends.  Money was tight, but that was okay because I knew God would provide for what I needed (and by “what I needed” I meant enough money to take advantage of all the Black Friday sales going on).  I made a long list of things I wanted to buy on this special shopping trip and began to pray in expectation that God would make that happen.  After all, God knew what an opportunity this was and I knew that He could work wonders.  My flight was very generously paid for by the friend who invited me on the trip, and I patiently waited for God to provide for the rest.

It’s unnecessary to share more details of the trip, but the gist of the story is that sudden riches were not bestowed upon me, and I spent three prayerful days in Chicago asking the Lord to guard my heart and not allow discontent to seep in.  I wanted to enjoy the real blessing of the weekend – being with a fantastic group of ladies on a big city weekend get-a-way.  Despite the many obvious pluses of the trip (and gratefulness to a special lady who gave a gift which covered my meals), I admit I was frustrated with the Lord.  I had placed my expectation in Him (like He asks us to, right?) and He didn’t come through.       

This is hardly an example of a life altering circumstance, but it is an example of where our expectations can get us into trouble.  I had confused God’s desire for me to place my expectation in HIM with my expectation of a desired outcome.  As believers struggling through difficult circumstances we encourage each other that God is still good and to expect great things from Him. From the get go we’re taught that God is the God of the impossible and to have faith in His ability to do wonderful things in our lives.  Those are all incredible truths that we have the privilege of living out as His children.  Where we often err, however, is in assuming He will do specific things for us outside of what He promises us in His Word.  When we hope for a certain outcome in any given situation and it doesn’t pan out like we’d hoped and prayed, we suddenly wonder if God is really as good and loving as He says He is, and why His promises (ex. Ps. 37:4 “Delight in the LORD and He will give you the desires of your heart” – a verse that’s still a mystery to me in many ways) didn’t ‘work’ for me.  This attitude, if not checked, can easily turn into a habit of not expecting good things at all and facing life with discouragement and defeat.  Someone once said, “a discouraged army enters battle with the certainty of defeat.”  That certainly, and sadly, can be the case in the life of the believer.   

So how do we live a life of joyful anticipation in the Lord? 

It begins with putting our hope in the right things.  Our faith can too easily be placed in what we are personally hoping for, rather than in what God tells us to hope in.  There are many wonderful things in this world that, simply put, God just doesn’t have planned for every one of us.   Faith set in the right direction allows us to take our eyes off of what the world says we should have and place it in what God has told us is already ours.  These are the real treasures (found in His Word) that result in the quietness and assurance that Isaiah talks about in chapter 30:15.

Charles Price, Pastor of The Peoples Church in Toronto, says, “The word hope contains, for many of us, uncertainty, ambiguity; it is tentative, it is vague.  The word “hope” in the English language has become most useful for things we’re not sure of…”I hope that will happen,” “I hope the store will still be open.”  But Biblical hope says, “if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance.” (Rom. 8:25). 

The Bible never says that we are filled with hope as we acquire things or as events pan out as we’d planned.  Romans 15:13 says we are filled with hope as we trust God…so much so that we will abound in it. 

“[God’s purposes] may be concealed for a very long time, but our faith may rest in the assurance that God is still seated on His throne.  Because of this assurance we can calmly await the time when, in heavenly delight, we will say, “All things [have worked] together for good.””  (from the devotional Streams in the Desert)   

So even in the absence of all we’ve dreamed for our lives, and of every apparent unmet need, let’s walk in confident expectation in our God who is “still seated on His throne” and has given us all we need for an abundant life.


“For our heart shall rejoice in Him, because we have trusted in His holy name.  Let Your mercy, O LORD, be upon us, just as we hope in You.”  
Psalm 33:21,22

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