Our Expectations

We expect a lot from people. We expect them to be on time, to return phone calls, to keep their promises, and to follow through. What happens when they don’t meet our expectations? There are usually two courses of action to follow: we can either drop our association with them or we can accept them as they are.

But what if this person is a friend? Should we re-evaluate the friendship because they aren’t reliable? Are they a friend, then? I think prayerful consideration must be made. You need to ask the Lord if this relationship is to continue. There are times when He will say you need to move on. But there will also be times when God wants you to hang in there, even when you feel like washing your hands from the whole relationship.

Why would God ask you to keep being friendly when the other person doesn’t seem to have their act together? Perhaps God is calling you to be an example of a true friend. Maybe God is testing your heart to see if you will be faithful when everyone else is faithless; to reach out when everyone else wants to pull away. Maybe He is using your example to show unconditional love to someone who doesn’t feel all that loveable. Maybe He is trying to teach you that you need to do what is right in God’s eyes despite what another does to you, expecting nothing in return. Maybe He is trying to show you that you are expecting too much.

Being a friend by God’s standards should not require us to wait for an expected response. Give the matter to the Lord. Pray for His guidance. He will make you love more than you thought possible.