When your expectations exceed God's expectations

When your expectations exceed God’s expectations, you’re setting yourself up for frustration and failure. Jesus said, “I have accomplished the work you set out for me to do” (John 17:4). Yet all sorts of things were still left undone. Was Jesus successful? He was because he followed the direction of the Father and the leading of the Spirit to do the assignment that was set before him.

Sometimes we generate expectations of a vision that are beyond the scope of what God has for us. God doesn’t overload us. We overload ourselves. We need to make sure we stay focused on the specific assignment God has for us. Visionary leaders have a tendency to think so big that they may be thinking bigger than what God wants them to do. The vision they have may be God’s, but will only be accomplished through lots and lots of people, not just that one leader. I could sit down in an afternoon and dream up more stuff than could be done in 10 lifetimes. So the critical question is, “Lord, what’s your assignment for me?” If all of us are asking that question, then God’s work gets accomplished.

Charles Hummel, in his booklet Tyranny of the Urgent, talks about our lives resembling overpacked suitcases bursting at the seams. He highlighted the message of Jesus in Mark 1:35. Granted, not all of us are early risers, but the principle is to take time to hear from God so we can follow his leading and overload our agendas with more than what God expects. All we need to do is our part, and we will someday hear “Well done, good and faithful servant.”