God's love

Unmet Expectations

Have you made a purchase that didn’t meet your expectations? This happened to me last week with makeup I ordered online. I wanted a product that would hide the sun freckles on my face. That’s what my dermatologist called them. I call them age spots. But even with my new makeup, the spots remained. What a disappointment. And that wasn’t the only time last week I encountered unmet expectations.

In my work in progress, my hero and heroine once shared a fondness for blue forget-me-nots, but at the time of my story, these same flowers represent brokenness. Because I mention forget-me-nots a few times in the book, I wanted to experience them too. I purchased and planted seeds, but I didn’t get what I expected. I wanted the flowers in the photograph above, but I got these instead:

Those tiny little flowers are lovely, but the blooms don’t have the white or yellow star in the center as I supposed. And I thought forget-me-not flowers were a little larger than the blossoms on my plant. Mine look like weeds with tiny 1/4-inch blooms.

My disappointment was due to my lack of knowledge before my purchase. Upon further research, I realized these weren’t the forget-me-nots I envisioned. The package stated Cynoglossum when I wanted Myosotis, which has the center stars I desired and blossoms of 3/8 inch. And 1/8 inch makes a vast difference with a tiny flower. This problem was easier to fix than my sun freckles: buy and plant the correct seeds!

These unmet expectations I experienced last week are small in comparison with situations we often deal with in life. Circumstances that cause heartache, such as a job that doesn’t go as well as we anticipated, a relationship that ends, a major diagnosis, or losing a loved one. But if we are a child of God, we can meet each situation with hope. Hope that God is with us and will carry us through whatever we face. In our trials, we grow in patience and courage. 

Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because
God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through
the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
Romans 5:3-5, NIV 

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace
as you trust in him, so that you may overflow
with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13, NIV 

Trust the Lord with those unmet expectations and rely upon Him and His great love for you. Ask for His help when you face difficulties in life. His hope is yours.


Notice I didn’t use my face for picture examples! If you have a product to recommend that works for me, I’ll be happy to post before and after photos in my newsletter!

Banner photo by Claude Laprise - Unsplash

The Battle Belongs to God

Many years ago, I taught eighth grade math. During my first year of teaching, I floated—no classroom to call my own. I traveled from room to room carrying my briefcase and books. One class of students kept me on my knees. Three older boys desired to rule the room. But the Lord led me to a story in the Bible that encouraged me and gave me strength to face them each day.

Do you remember the story of Jehoshaphat found in 2 Chronicles 20? He cried out to God for the people of Judah. Jehoshaphat heard that armies were coming to attack their city, and his people did not have the power to fight back. He prayed and looked to the Lord for help. The Lord spoke. Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s (v 15).

God instructed the people to march against the enemy but not fight. Jehoshaphat and the people of Judah bowed before the Lord and worshipped Him. Others stood and offered praise to the Lord with a loud voice. The next morning they went out to face their enemies. Jehoshaphat stood and encouraged the people to have faith. He then appointed men to sing to the Lord and praise Him saying, Give thanks to the Lord, for His love endures forever (v 21).

When the people sang praises, the Lord set ambushes against their enemies causing them to kill one another. Judah did not have to fight.

Jehoshaphat’s story became my own. Every time I entered this classroom, I felt under attack and didn’t know how to handle the situation. I cried out to the Lord for help and realized the battle belonged to Him. Every day, when I climbed the stairs to this room, I repeated Jehoshaphat’s song of praise. “I thank you Lord, for Your love endures forever.” Within three weeks, the Lord delivered me.

Are you asking if the Lord set ambushes against these three boys and they killed one another? I’m thankful that didn’t happen, but I no longer stressed over the situation. The Lord moved one to another town, expelled another, and sent the third to a different school. God fought my battle, and I continue to praise Him.

What battle are you facing today? Give thanks to the Lord. His love endures forever.