EXPECTATIONS

As long as our expectations line up with reality, all is well in the world.  It is the point in time when our expectations and reality  head off in different directions , that we loose faith and give up on hope.  For that reason, I usually keep my expectations low--and then I am not disappointed and sometimes even pleasantly surprised.  A pessimist--no--I think of myself as a realist.




Why I even set myself up for dashed expectations by visiting Pintrest.  I start these great projects thinking I will get this:




And by the time my mentee and I finished--it looked like this-



HEY--WE HAD FUN DOING IT and got better on the next one!

And then there are my culinary adventures--




And of course---my perpetual quest for peak condition, which





falls into the abyss of failed worked outs and lame excuses.

Let's face it--talking a good game is MUCH easier than following through with the real deal---whatever the subject.

A LONG time ago---there was expectations for the promised Messiah--He would be born of royal blood---a king--with all the kingly trappings--power--riches--wisdom--strength--the ability to overcome those who had tormented God's chosen people.  He would ride in on a white horse and put things right!



Reality looks quite different---He was born of a royal family---but not with a crown on His head.  He was born into a working class family--not rich---but making a living as a carpenter---wise--but not recognized for His wisdom by everyone until much later---He rode a donkey---not the white horse---and he died a painful death and was quickly placed in a borrowed tomb with no fanfare.  



Why was reality so far from the expectations of the people?  Because the expectations were just that--of the people--not what was prophesied, but what the people wanted to see---how they wanted it all to play out--not the reality of God's plan.

Christmas is days away---and I am thinking about my expectations of how life should look and the reality of where God has me.  The challenge is recognizing the beauty and redemption in the reality of the day.  The day to day acceptance of God's plan being the perfect plan and then my expectations will line up with the reality of the day.

I pray your expectations will all center around the presence of Jesus as Christmas approaches and the reality of His birth will fill your celebration with the true wonder of the season.  Counting down the days and two more blogs before our wait is over---

May your Advent lead your heart to Him.


For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him
Psalm 62:5

4 comments

  1. Count me in as the realist as well...and btw, I liked yours better (the hot cocoa mix)---many Christmas Blessings to you...and since I am still drinking my first cup of coffee, I will leave it at that.

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    1. Well my sweet mentee is into glitz & glamor & she loved it!
      Christmas Blessings, Sweet Friend!

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  2. I am an optimistic realist. I believe that when one door shuts another one will slam. Although with perseverence another door will eventually open ... It will most probably open outwards and hit me in the face. But at least it will open. I'll look up and the sign on it will say "EXIT". I remember I once visited a fortune teller. She looked into her plastic bowl (couldn't afford a crystal bowl) and she said that soon a rich man will bow down at my feet. Within a week I had to go to the chiropodist. I stumbled into his practice room in pain and said to him: "Doctor you've got to help me out!" He replied: "Sure, which way did you come in?" He then stopped laughing and asked me to jump onto his couch. I asked him why. He said he wanted to vacuum clean just where I was standing. Whilst lying on the couch I told him that I often got the feeling I was just a dog in my family. He asked: "How long have you felt this way?" I said: "Ever since I was a puppy!" I then realised what was happening and got up quickly because at home I am not allowed on the couch. I sat on the floor in the corner of his room. He dropped his pencil accidentally. I told him to fetch it himself; I'm not his dog.

    But sincerely Lulu; I love what you've written here today. So true and so thoughtful. God bless you always my friend.

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    1. I can count on laughing almost everyday at least once/-
      Thank you , Victor!

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Your comments keep my writing and often cause me to think. A written form of a hug or a pat on the back and an occasional slap into reality---I treasure them all!