What did you expect?

Whine flows freely today, made easier by instantaneous social media platforms assuring empathy from friends and even strangers. I love it when Facebook is a place for prayer needs, celebration, giving thanks, and encouragement. But there’s a muddy current flowing through this now common means of communication, and it sounds a lot like complaining. If you listen in on conversations in the booths around you at Panera, you may hear the same sour song. After all, if we’re honest, we have certain expectations about life and living it. What did you expect?

November has become the month of rehearsing reasons for gratitude, for stirring up satisfaction in our souls. We cap off the whine around Halloween and purpose to think only of thanks. But sometimes it’s hard to give thanks … and mean it. Because sometimes life is hard. Actually, it’s hard a lot more than it’s easy. If we expect anything different, we set ourselves up for a lot of angst or a lot of whine.

So for November, can we be a little more honest with each other? I, for one, am in one of the hard times of life. Jeff and I are using words like transition, decisions, reflection, healing, and wisdom … a lot. Like you, our lives have been a mixture of what we expected and what surprised us and what leaves us long on our knees. We’ve finished a fruitful decade of serving on staff together at our church, but now we’re looking forward and waiting on God to show us our new path. In the midst of changes, I’m in a transitional role as the Executive Director of Street Grace Tennessee, I’m launching my book in November, and I’m nurturing my family through the changes. There’s a lot I can’t predict or control. (Argh!) I’d love to know what to expect.

What we can expect

This month we’ll talk about our expectations and how true gratitude is born out of watching God engage those expectations … His way. To start with, we can expect life to be hard and still be good.

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.” (James 1:2-3)

• I can expect to have hard times.
• I can expect to have my faith tested.
• I can expect to grow when things are hard.

Life includes some sour times, but we’re not meant to make whine. We’re meant to grow steadfast, enduring, and constant.

Are you in a hard time? Do you wish you could know what to expect about your future? Join me this month as we look to God’s word and ask Him, “What can we expect?” I think you’ll find yourself overflowing with genuine gratitude as the month unfolds. That’s what I’m “expecting” … 😉

(By the way, don’t you love the way we “rearranged the furniture” here at Come Have a Peace? I love the fresh, hope-filled feel designed by Holly Smith of Crown Laid Down Designs!)