When God Doesn't Meet Our Expectations

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses...”
Acts 1:8

I think sometimes, without even realizing it, we create expectations for God.

If I’m following Him, things should work out.

If I pray about it, He should answer.

If I’m doing what He asked me to do, surely the path should be somewhat smooth.

And then life doesn’t cooperate.

The prayer isn’t answered the way we hoped. The situation gets harder instead of easier. We ask God for clarity and get silence. Suddenly we’re left wondering, *God, where are You in this?*

I wonder if sometimes the problem isn’t that God has failed us, but that our expectations were placed on something He never promised.

I love the interaction between Jesus and the disciples in Acts 1. Jesus had literally risen from the dead, and the disciples still had questions about what was going to happen next. They wanted to know when He was going to restore the kingdom to Israel.

Jesus basically tells them, That isn’t for you to know.

Not exactly the answer I would have been hoping for.

But then He tells them something incredibly important:

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you...”

They asked for information. Jesus gave them His presence.

They wanted clarity about what was coming. Jesus gave them what they needed to walk through whatever came next.

And I think I need that reminder more often than I would like to admit.

God may not explain everything to me.

I may only ever see one tiny piece of a much bigger picture. There may even be questions I carry that never get answered this side of eternity.

But there is one question I never have to wonder about:

Does God love me?

That one has already been answered.

The cross answered it.

Jesus didn’t promise us a life without difficulty. In fact, His own life certainly wasn’t one. He was rejected, betrayed, beaten, and crucified. Difficulty was not evidence that God had disappeared from the story.

It was right in the middle of the story God was writing.

Maybe instead of expecting God to make everything smooth, explain everything, or work everything out according to the picture I have in my head, I can change my expectation.

I can expect His presence.

I can expect His faithfulness.

I can expect His love.

And when everything else feels uncertain, I can stand firmly on what I already know.

God loves me.

Maybe I don’t need the whole picture today.

Maybe I just need to trust the One who sees it.

Reflection

Is there something happening in your life right now that has caused you to question what God is doing? Instead of asking God only for an explanation, take some time today to ask Him to help you recognize His presence and His love in the middle of it.

Prayer

God, I know I don’t always understand what You are doing. Sometimes I want answers more than I want to trust You. Help me surrender the expectations I have placed on You that You never promised to fulfill. When I can’t see the whole picture, remind me of what I do know: You are with me, You are faithful, and You love me. Help me trust You with everything I don’t understand. Amen.