I WAITED patiently and expectantly for the Lord; and He inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up out of a horrible pit [a pit of tumult and of destruction], out of the miry clay (froth and slime), and set my feet upon a rock, steadying my steps and establishing my goings. And He has put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many shall see and fear (revere and worship) and put their trust and confident reliance in the Lord. - Psalm 40:1-3
A journey always begins with an expected destination. So we begin this journey with the hope at the end of this study, you will find a process to your freedom. You may not be free yet, but you certainly will have the tools in place to be free very soon.
At the beginning of every lesson, I will post the entire scripture we are studying together, because repetition fuses it to your memory. Our focus for step 1 is expectation.
Have you ever placed a certain expectation on an event, situation, or person only to be disappointed by the outcome? Yes, me too. It can be a source of great frustration and pain when things don't turn out as planned. Frustration is simply misaligned expectations. That frustration can eat away at us, causing us to stay in a continual loop of disappointment, anger, and hurt. This can happen with a dream job that didn't fulfill the vision you had. Our hopes can be dashed when placing unattainable expectations on a person. Many times we never communicate what we expect, so when they fail to meet them, we become disillusioned and hurt by the person who probably didn't intended to hurt us. Is that fair? Fair or not, we do it. Even those closest to us, that in our minds resolutely declare they will never hurt us, but then they do. Why? Because people are people; broken, struggling, imperfect people. They will not be able to meet every longing of your heart.
I am someone who can easily live in a state of frustration. Little things can frustrate me the most. I can be running late for work, drop my hair brush while digging through a basket to find one matching sock to complete my outfit. In those moments, I bellow an "ugh" and sigh! Little frustrations like that should not be able to throw an otherwise normal day into a tailspin of anger. When it does, then there is a bigger source of frustration that we need to address.
When you are already in a pit of -
...depression
...anxiety
...self-loathing
...anger
...victimization
...perfectionism
...insecurity
...sin
...hurt
...abuse
...the smallest set-back can overwhelm us to the point we give up or shut-down. Those misplaced expectations clench onto us, reinforcing what we already believe about ourselves and the situations we face. The enemy whispers, "your life is always going to be this way, you will never be free." I am here to tell you, that it a lie, because the enemy is a liar and the father of lies. (John 8:44)
Expectations whether reasonable or not ultimately come down to choice.
That is why if we want to receive an abundant joyful life, our expectations must be placed on the shoulders of the One who cannot fail us. I mean, God may not fulfill the expectations we have in our minds, but He will certainly fulfill His perfect will, so long as we let Him.
In the scripture, the writer, plainly states,
“I waited patiently and expectantly for the Lord.” (vs. 1)
The writer chose to hope in the God who never fails, never forsakes, never gives up on us. The God who is able to do anything and everything. Right now as you read this, you are thinking, “you are right, God can do anything…but…"
There it is a “but”. We all have them (figuratively speaking). But…will He? Expectation is rooted in faith; a faith that not only says God can do anything, but He WILL do it for me. God created you for a distinct purpose, most of which is to have a relationship with Him. He brutally died on the cross for all of us and that includes you! If He died for you won’t He certainly come through for you when you call out for help? I shout a resounding "yes!"
Sometimes I think we believe, He only came for the ones who appear to be perfect. We think Jesus just hangs around beautifully landscaped houses in our cul-de-sac, where every instagram picture paints an idyllic family. No, He goes to where the hurting, the broken and the ones who need Him and He doesn’t disappoint showing up. He stands by your muddy despairing pit and says "I'm here to pull you out."
It has been in the times when I was at my absolute worst that Jesus had no reason to rescue me, but was within His rights to cast me away. It was then, Jesus spoke this scripture to me. He came for me at my worst because He loves me. I was spiritually sick and He came to heal and deliver me.
' Now the Pharisees and their scribes were grumbling against Jesus' disciples, saying, Why are you eating and drinking with tax collectors and [preeminently] sinful people? And Jesus replied to them, It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick.' - Luke 5:30-31
Choose to believe Jesus is able and willing to meet every need whether you feel worthy of it or not. Choose to believe He can and will provide new life to you. In our next steps, we will take a good look at our own miry pit, but for now, I'm praying that you choose to expect God to deliver you, because I believe the destination ahead for you is freedom and joy! Be blessed today!
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