Expect?
Yes, I expect from many sources. I hold expectations in my marriage. Or, for dreams to exceed my expectations. For employers to love my skills. And for readers to relate to my writing.
Perhaps you expect in your life, too.
However, I confess: Believing for the divine to occur every day is not easy for me.
Because the concept is hard for humans to wrap our heads around. You see, we live and operate in the flesh, in the natural world. Supernatural stuff only seems right for the movies or a book…or for heaven.
But what if divine, God-things are meant for us here on this earth? And what if the Lord intended for us to look for displays of His works in our day-to-day routine?
Psalm 105 in The Message describes it:
Hallelujah! Thank God! Pray to him by name! Tell everyone you meet what he has done! Sing him songs, belt out hymns, translate his wonders into music! Honor his holy name with Hallelujahs, you who seek God. Live a happy life! Keep your eyes open for God, watch for his works; be alert for signs of his presence. Remember the world of wonders he has made, his miracles…(Verses 1-6a).
Maybe we tell others of all the great things God has done for us. And we praise the Lord for every deed or blessing from His hand.
Yet, don’t miss the second vital part. The divine happens today and continues into tomorrow and the next day and the next.
This passage gives us 3 ways to expect the divine in our life.
1) Expect by keeping our eyes open for God.
Not wishing to see what might be ahead, I kept my eyes closed. College friends talked me into riding a roller coaster at Disneyland. Let me be clear. I’m fearful of heights, and not a fan of going upside down, or dropping off steep inclines.
Likewise, life causes twists and turns, flips our world upside down, or drops us from a steep incline. Still, God is with us through it all, always along for the ride. He holds onto us as He accomplishes His purposes in everything.
We must keep both our physical and spiritual eyes open to see God’s wonders and miracles.
[bctt tweet=”We must keep both our physical and spiritual eyes open to see God’s wonders and miracles. #WednesdayMotivation @FridayKaren” username=”PatHolbrook”]
2) Expect by watching for God’s works.
Sometimes my husband and I pick up our grandson, Foster, to spend the night. One of those times, our daughter sent us a picture of him watching from a window for us to arrive.
Waiting, he probably anticipated what adventures were ahead at Mimi and Pop Pop’s house. Regular adventures like walks to see the cows nearby. And the new activities at each visit.
Do we watch for God to arrive at just the right moment? Or, do we anticipate new adventures with our heavenly Father as we wait for Him? Do we believe and watch for the Lord’s activity in our life?
3) Expect by staying alert for signs of God’s presence.
The shrill beeping from my iPhone startled me in the middle of the night. A flash-flood alert. The Cambridge English Dictionary defines alert as “quick to see, understand.”
Are we missing alerts from heaven? Or, are we quick to see and understand God’s presence among us?
Miracles even happen in the unknown. Nothing is coincidence. Instead, God is always working behind the scenes on our behalf.
And God provides signs of how He performed a supernatural act, sent us on a divine appointment, scheduled a soul-encounter, or protected us from harm with His angels.
[bctt tweet=”God provides signs of how He performed a #supernatural act, sent us on a #divine appointment, scheduled a soul-encounter, or protected us from harm with His angels. @FridayKaren” username=”PatHolbrook”]
These are God-things for us and our loved ones. But also the small, yet, still miraculous things happening daily. Things we’re often unaware of and point directly back to God. There’s simply no other explanation.
Expect to access the divine:
- Because of Jesus.
- Because of Calvary’s cross and the empty tomb.
- And because resurrection power dwells in us. (See Romans 8:11, Ephesians 1:19-20, Philippians 3:10.)
Due to the divine power available to us, encore performances of God-things happen each day of our lives. Encores by grace, peace, hope, goodness, love, and mercy.
So, starting right now, today…expect.
Expect divine, God-things to happen. Things only God can pull off.
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Karen,
Praying that I would live life “eyes wide open” so that I don’t miss the miracles and wonders He wants to show me. Also, thanks for the reminder that God is working miracles in the lives of loved ones- miracles that I may not even be aware of until after the fact. Thanks for re-setting my heart to “Expectation Mode”!
Blessings,
Bev xx
Bev, I like this, “…re-setting my heart to Expectation Mode.” Yes! May we reset our hearts daily to look for and expect the divine to happen around us. And even whisper grateful prayers for the unseen miracles God pulls off for us on a regular basis.
This makes me think of OT Israel, sometimes forgetting or overlooking or growing too used to the everyday miracle of manna. God does so much for us every day. We so need to be alert to the ways He provides for us and takes care of us. Those experiences and His Word will feed our expectations that He will continue to work in our behalf.
Agree, Barbara. The children of Israel had a reputation for calling out to God for His help, then turning away from Him. And, sadly, their hearts were set on repeat to forget the Lord’s works…to forget Him. Let’s pray to be aware of heaven’s alerts as we are quick to understand God is in our midst and working behind the scenes on our behalf. Lord, we expect!
“Translate His wonders into music!”
I love that rendering of the verse, and it’s a challenge to me today to invest my hope fully in a God who can exceed all our expectations as we trust him and his ways.
It is a beautiful phrase! Just to think of His wonders as a powerful and sweet melody ringing true in our lives and hearts. Thanks for adding your thoughts, Michele.
Yes! I can (and should) walk through fully expecting to see God show up instead of expecting something to go wrong. Thank you for this shift in mindset!
Rebecca, we ofen do expect the what-ifs or the worst case scenario instead of expecting God-things from a good, good Father. May the Lord helps us change our mindset to think on Him and His power!
Karen, thank you for this call to faith and reminder that those who come to God believe that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. I want to live like that!
Yes, Debbie, I want to live like that as well! Thanks for adding to our conversation.
I expect; period especially in this season of my life. My eyes, ears, and heart are expecting to see God’s hand, hear his voice and sense his presence.
I love how you stated it, Yvonne. Lord, help our eyes, ears, and heart expect from Your hand and hear Your voice and sense Your presence in our daily lives. Amen.
I was thinking along these very lines, I never expected that some things wouldn’t happen, good ones, other bad ones, I never anticipated, but God knew, He has it covered. I always expect good things from Him.
Rebecca, sometimes we miss anticipating what God will do and even living expectant of His works. Yet, it’s often the greatest part of the Christian faith as we believe in His divine power.
Watching for God is something I am working to do better at. laurensparks.net
Me too, Lauren. “Hallelujah! Thank God! Pray to him by name! Tell everyone you meet what he has done! Sing him songs, belt out hymns, translate his wonders into music! Honor his holy name with Hallelujahs, you who seek God. Live a happy life! Keep your eyes open for God, watch for his works; be alert for signs of his presence. Remember the world of wonders he has made, his miracles…” (Psalm 105: 1-6a, MSG).
I don’t think I grew up with the mindset of expectation for what God was going to do. But I’m grateful now that I’ve learned to develop an attitude of expectation. Thanks for reinforcing that today!
Hey Lisa, I would guess most of us grew up without an expectant mindset toward God. Now, it’s something we learn and cultivate as we mature in our faith. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.