Unmet Expectations

God with you - A Series from the Psalms

Psalm 77 

(Use the link below to read the verses.)

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%2077&version=NIV;NLT

 

Unmet expectations! Everybody has them. It might be as small as your expectation of another driver to not cut you off. Or it could be as big as the expectations of a spouse not being fulfilled, resulting in a marriage breaking apart.

 

Whether they are the garden variety, daily living type of unmet expectation, or the earth shattering, life changing type; we all have them. The question is, how do you deal with them?

 

The psalmist had unmet expectations of God that hurt him deeply.

 

² When I was in deep trouble,
    I searched for the Lord.
All night long I prayed, with hands lifted toward heaven,
    but my soul was not comforted.            NLT

 

As a result of his unfulfilled attempts to connect with God, he asked some painful questions.

 

⁷ Has the Lord rejected me forever?
    Will he never again be kind to me?
⁸ Is his unfailing love gone forever?
    Have his promises permanently failed?
⁹ Has God forgotten to be gracious?
    Has he slammed the door on his compassion?          NLT

 

You may have asked yourself those same questions. However, the most important question to ask is, how did you respond? The psalmist reached the point of no return when something unexpected happened.

 

¹⁰ And I said, “This is my fate;
    the Most High has turned his hand against me.”
¹¹ But then I recall all you have done, O Lord;
    I remember your wonderful deeds of long ago.         NLT

 

The Psalmist goes on to recount how God miraculously brought the nation of Israel out of slavery in Egypt, into the freedom of the Promised Land. He brought them salvation. It is the same salvation that He offers to us; that is, to leave the land of slavery to sin for the Promised Land of freedom in Jesus.

 

Unmet expectations! Have yours led you to give up hope? Or do you keep reaching out to God? For He is faithful; He loves you with unfailing love; He is with you always and at work constantly. There is none other like Him. remember His wonderful deeds.

 

 

 

 

Dreams that Disappear

“Where are you God?” - A Series from the Psalms

Psalm 90

(Use the link below to read the verses.)

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%2090&version=NIV;NLT

 

⁵ You sweep people away like dreams that disappear…
¹⁰ Seventy years are given to us!
    Some even live to eighty.
But even the best years are filled with pain and trouble;
    soon they disappear, and we fly away.           NLT

 

Losing someone is painful and irreversible. Over the past three years I’ve lost two friends who played a significant role in my life. Lynn was my best friend growing up. He was my steady rock who I depended on for security, support and guidance. He died at the age of 66.

 

Bob was the primary person that led to my family moving to Columbus, Ohio. We didn’t know anybody, but Bob and his wife Linda helped us to adjust to this major life change by being our best friends. He died at the age of 62.

 

In this Psalm, Moses paints a gloomy picture of the crucible of life. Because it is filled with pain and trouble, and then we die, life can expose you, your short comings, your sins and your warts; life can be out of control, and your dreams can quickly disappear.

 

In the middle of his melancholic reflection, Moses called out to God asking for wisdom by understanding the brevity of life; to satisfy him with God’s unfailing love; to see God’s work in his life; and to gain God’s approval.

 

Horatio Spafford was also a man familiar with dreams that disappear. In 1871, following the great Chicago Fire that destroyed his real estate investments, his four year old son died of scarlet fever. Then, on November 22, 1873, his four young daughters died as they were crossing the Atlantic and their ship was struck by an iron sailing vessel.

 

He knew what it was like to experience a sudden, tragic loss. He knew what it was like to experience the pain and struggle of daily living. He knew what it was like to experience life out of control. He knew what it was like to feel exposed and helpless.

 

But he found solace in the unfailing love of God, and wrote the lyrics to It Is Well With My Soul.

 

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well with my soul.

 

When your dreams disappear; whatever your lot is; whatever your struggles are; the unfailing love of God is always waiting for you to embrace it, so that you too might be able to say, “It is well with my soul”.