Life: Expectations vs. Reality
Remember this lesson from God's Word when life isn't going as well as you hoped.
It’s true what they say ... life doesn’t always turn out as we expect.
As Christians, we might expect our lives to become like a smooth road, with no pain or problems – just full of happiness.
But in reality, we find life is often more like a dirty and bumpy road, packed with trouble and pain.
Sometimes we feel like God is not there when we are in distress. We hope to be the popular person, to have a lot of friends who understand us, to look cool at school … but it turns out instead we’re bullied and betrayed by friends.
I remembere when I moved to a new junior high school. I tried to search for new friends, but things didn’t work out as I expected.
In fact, it got so bad I started to think about moving to yet another school.
Of course, at the time I was angry with God, asking him, “Why did you put me here?”
Through this time of questioning, I started to think more deeply about why I was getting so much trouble from other kids. And it turns out a lot of the problem was me, not other people. I was self-righteousness, selfish and loved to provoke conflict.
And so, I gradually I started to change myself with God’s help, and things began to improve.
Now, when I look back, I feel like I finally understand God’s plan for me during that painful time. He was using it for a wonderful purpose, to shape my attitude to be more like Christ.
As I thought about the difference between expectation and reality in my life, I was reminded of what happened to God’s people, the Israelites, when Jesus arrived on the scene.
People in Israel were expecting freedom from the Roman Empire, hoping that the Messiah would save them from their oppressors.
But the reality tuned out quite different—Jesus did not come to destroy the Roman Empire so Israel would be free, he came to destroy death so the whole world would be set free! By his death on the cross, we who believe in Him will have eternal life.
“But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ” —1 Corinthians 15:57
If you feel like you’re always suffering and facing tough situations in your life, don’t worry, be strong.
God knows what you’re going through and He has a plan to use it to make your more like Jesus.
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”—Romans 8:28
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