Christmas time can be a season of unreal, unmet expectations. If we’re not careful the joy of the season can be robbed by the pressure and disappointment of expecting one thing and receiving another. Since Christmas is to be the day we celebrate the birth of Jesus the Christ, I have often wondered if it was like that for Mary, the mother of Jesus at that ‘first Christmas.’ When the angel Gabriel revealed to her that God was going to supernaturally cause Her to conceive His own Son she said:
‘From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me -holy is His name… [Luke 1:46-55].
Do you think at that point she expected the ridicule of being accused of fornication? (After all, she was a bride-to-be that was now pregnant before the wedding.) Do you think when she was making that statement in Luke 1 that she expected she would give birth in a cave/stable with no one even caring enough about her situation to offer her a bed? Giving birth to the Messiah, the Savior of the World, God’s own Son, you would expect to be recognized and welcomed and celebrated, right? She laid her firstborn in a feeding trough. What was going on in her heart and mind as she laid the Son of God in a pile of animal food?
This week as we celebrate Christmas and inch closer to the new year I want to encourage you to give your expectations to God as a gift. Don’t let your joy be robbed this Christmas, and don’t let the new year be shrouded in despair before you even get started. Here’s three keys to managing your expectations:
1. Remember that you don’t ‘do’ a promise, you receive a promise (Genesis 21:1-2)
If God has given you a dream or placed a desire in your heart then He is fully capable to perform it and does not need your help. When you ‘do’ a promise by taking things into your own hands based on your own expectations you birth an Ishmael. When you ‘receive’ a promise in God’s way and perfect timing you get Issac (and Jacob, and David, and Jesus!) (Click here to read my post on this very concept)
2. Don’t add to what God told you or what you prayed for, after the fact (Proverbs 30:5-6)
Often times God does exactly what He said He would but we are disappointed because we wrap our expectations around the thing God promised. God promised to meet your needs but you weren’t able to provide a big Christmas for your family this year… He met your needs! You prayed for a new job but don’t like your new boss… You got the new job you were believing for! You got a Christmas bonus but it wasn’t enough to put in a new pool… You got a bonus!! (Click here to read my post called ‘Don’t Do the Devil’s Job For Him)
3. Be Joyful in Hope, Patient in Affliction and Faithful in Prayer (Romans 12:12)
Rejoice! God has been faithful to you for another year. Perhaps things haven’t turned out the way you expected. As long as there is a heart beating in your chest then God is still working on you and for you. Be patient and be faithful to pray. Your expectations are very small in comparison to what God has in store for you. Your current situation may not look the way you want but it’s also not the finished product. (Click here to read my post called ‘Same Storm Different View’)
Jesus was introduced to us in a manger. He will come soon and sit on the throne of the universe. Give Him your heart and your expectations this Christmas. He does not disappoint.
Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? –Galatians 3:3
Wait for the Lord, be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord! –Psalm 27:14
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