Faulty Expectations

I have been thinking alot in the past few days about how REALLY, SEVERELY messed up people can get from one thing: Faulty expectations.

It applies to so many areas of life:  Expecting too much out of marriage, ...like it is going to 'cure' your loneliness and everything else wrong if you are single.....expecting too much out of a new job,...like it is going to give you so much fulfillment and happiness now...expecting too much out of a church,....like it is supposed to give you a great social life, automatically cause you to grow,...on and on.

But nowhere is this more dangerous than in our relationship with God.

Over the past week, I have had emails, prayer requests, conversations...a number of them...that all have to do with disappointment with God.  It goes something like this:  "I have been tithing, but nothing is changing.  Why even tithe?"  or "I prayed for so and so to be healed, but nothing happened.  Why pray?"  or "I am doing my best to serve God but everything is going wrong.  Why even try""

Sound familiar? 

Dangerous.  Very dangerous.  And it represents deeply faulty thinking about God and how life works. 

I plan on doing a message on this, "Life On Two Planes", sometime in the future.  But for now, let me just say that LIFE IS NOT EASY.  BUT GOD IS ALWAYS GOOD, PERIOD.  That means sometimes your finances will stink.  Sometimes people die you pray for.  Sometimes things go terribly wrong.  God is not the originator, nor is a "genie" you can just call on to make it all right.  Sorry.  It doesnt work that way.  God calls us to TRUST Him, lean on Him, look for mercy in the messes of life, walk with Him THROUGH life. 

Sometimes we see startling miracles.  Sometimes we dont.  Oftentimes we just see mercy in the messes.  But we walk with our God, because we love Him and trust Him.

We have to separate LIFE from GOD.  Life can be harsh at times.  Life can be good at times.  God is always good, overshadowing life, BIGGER than the shifting circumstances of our lives, if that makes sense.

And He is working it ALL out for our good in the Big Picture.  (Romans 8:28)

I have walked with God a long time now.  I have prayed for many who were healed.  I have prayed for many who were not.  I still pray, knowing the Kingdom is not fully now manifested, but here, there, at points.  I just give the opportunity by praying in faith.  I have tithed for almost 30 years.  I have had great blessings.  I have also lost alot of money in various ways, had bad financial breaks.  I honor God with my tithe, period. 

In other words, the good, the bad of life doesnt change how I relate to God and what I do out of that, my obedience.

More to come later....

PB

Comments

[Debbie Bixler]

Right on--Preach it Brother Bobby--Cannot wait to hear your message about Living on Two Planes!!! My mother lived by Romans 8:28 and so do I! God is good all the time! He is always working things out for our Good. Long time ago I learned the prayer"God is Great. God is Good. Let us thank him for our food. By His hands we must be fed. Give us Lord our daily bread. Amen." We must trust Him totally, not holding anything back because he holds nothing back from us. He just wants us to ask. "You have not because you ask not," Jesus once said. So TRUE. He may answer Yes, No or Wait awhile but he always answers!!! We must accept the answer becaause our Heavenly Father knows best.

[Lindsey]

Oswald Chambers echos this well in Utmost..on Oct. 13th. "Individual Discouragement and Personal Growth"- he talks about how God was preparing Moses for a work but revealed this to him 40 years before it came to be. Moses had to be right in his perspective and learn "true fellowship and oneness with God" over many, discouraging years. But being discouraged can be an opportunity to GROW instead of an excuse to fail. In my efforts to "be not discouraged", I am telling my Father that I need Him and desire Him more. I am HAVING to throw myself onto His promises and forsake what I see in front of me. It's hard though... Satan is the AUTHOR of lies, but we don't have to be the PUBLISHERS of them. Just because I feel a certain way, doesn't mean I have to walk that out.

Thanks for sharing this- good timing. I like what you said about separating LIFE from GOD- we selfishly blame Him for things that mere humans, circumstances or we, ourselves caused.

[amanda]

Good word, PB.

[Freddie]

I have to step back on my soap box and add an addendum to my last comment. I must say also that -----Get ready for this ---------
GOD DOES NOT OWE US ANYTHING----- Some how we have this idea God owes us. We tithe - to get blessed, we pray - to get healed etc. We need to realize God paid a debt He did not owe, one I could not pay. I OWE HIM ALL. I tithe, because I AM blessed, not to be blessed. Jesus did not call disciples to "come try Me", He commanded us to count the cost, lay it all down, take up the cross and follow Him.

[Freddie]

It is sad, but true that many of us (myself included) approach God with a mindset that "if I do such and such then God will do this" and we "try" applying the principles of the word of God expecting results. Scripture makes it very clear that we are to walk by faith (total abandonment, reliance, trust) in Jesus. Faith is the very substance behind every promise of God. Faith is not "I'll try" but "I will" regardless of what may come. Hebrews tells us in the 11th chapter that "all these died having not received the promise". If we are to be a people of faith, we have to cross the line of being double minded (read James) over into total dogged determined attitude that I am not moved by what I see, but by what I believe.
GOD NEVER FAILS.

[Brian]

This was really good. I have been dealing with this. But I have been reading first peter and LOVE the first two verses of the book. Peter says he is writing to the ELECT EXILES according to the foreknowledge of God.. To me, that is amazing. God knows and loves us.

[Jenny Smith]

Truth written excellently..

[Danielle Peebles]

Thank you, Pastor Bobby! That is exactly what I have been feeling lately. You put it into words so well!

[DONNA]

Amen! Just thinking about this and who God IS fills my heart with joy. He is in complete control and He does work ALL things together for our good! It's been my experience that I am the one at fault on so many of the things that have gone wrong in my life, not God. We do reap what we sow. God is good and He is the one that provides the way out, the solution, the comfort, the answers. I am so much stronger today as a result of the hard times the difficulties that have come in my life. "Count it all joy when we fall into various trials knowing that the testing of your faith will bring about patience." James 1:2-3 I would'nt change a thing. Trust Trust Trust in HIM alone!

[Leah]

So good, PB...really great thoughts on how to walk out our relationship with God in spite of what's going on around us. We all need to be reminded of the true foundation, not just what we can see and feel.

[Kenda]

Very true. Jesus warned us not to be surprised by suffering. And Paul, hero of the faith, suffered so much and counted it as joy. Yet, I am so quick to dive into self-doubt and despair when I encounter disappointment. We've grown up in the quick fix mentality. We're complaining about traffic while the apostles were worshipping God in jail. What a different perspective.