Releasing Expectations

Expectations.  We all have them.  Different aspects of our daily lives naturally have various expectations set up for us.  These include expectations about our jobs, our accomplishments, our behaviors, and the overall way we live our lives.  Expectations are not necessarily bad.  They often help us set standards and allow us to think about the choices we should make.  But if we truly trust God, we must not allow expectations to rule our lives.

To trust in God means more than to simply believe in His existence.  It means to fully give ourselves to Him.  When we trust God completely, we will not obsess about our future plans or worry about what our lives may entail next month, next year, or five years from now.  Our society is continually presenting us with expectations about what we need to accomplish, where we need to go, what items we need to have, and how we should live.  But ultimately, God is in control and He is the only one who knows how our lives will look.  We must look to Him, and not  the world, for guidance on how to live.

To think that we can fully plan our lives and decide what is or isn’t going to happen is of no use.  We often have ideas of how we think our lives should be.  Or, other people have expectations of what our lives should look like.  But when we have these ideas or allow the opinions of others to impact us, this sets us up for disappointment and doubt in the goodness and providence of God.

When we stop setting certain expectations for our lives, we are able to more fully trust that God provides us with what we need.  Our expectations and desires for certain things can cloud our vision of God working in our lives.  And when we fail to see how God is working in our lives, we can lose our trust in Him and question if He is really with us.
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When it comes to living each day, we must open our hands to release any expectations we are clinging to.  We must keep our hands open, ready to receive whatever may come: the gifts God gives us, the suffering He allows, the joys, and challenges.  Trust God completely.  He knows what you need, better than anyone else.