Expectations & Realities
Year A: Third Sunday of Advent
Isaiah 35; Psalm 146; James 5:7–20; Matthew 11:2–190
When God Doesn’t Follow Your Script: Embracing Divine Reality Over Human Expectations
Have you ever prayed for God to solve a problem, only to discover He had an entirely different solution in mind? I certainly have. There was a time in my life when I was languishing within the shambles of career as a professional musician that had seen me rise to incredible success only to have it unceremoniously ripped away.
When Plans Crumble
My expectations were clear: either God would restore me in this career or help me find a new career through my job applications. But God had other ideas. “What he really asked of me at this moment was to stop. To—for really the first time in my life—fully trust that He had a purpose and a plan for me and that He wouldn’t let me miss it.” This request went against every expectation I had: it felt irresponsible to stop sending out resumes; to stop applying for jobs. Yet God was teaching me a fundamental truth: our expectations do not define God’s realities.
John the Baptist’s Expectations
This same principle appears in Matthew 11:2-19, where we find John the Baptist in prison sending disciples to ask Jesus if he was “the one who is to come.” John had previously declared Jesus “the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world” and witnessed the Holy Spirit descending on Him at baptism. So why the question? Maybe it wasn’t doubt but misaligned expectations. Perhaps John expected Jesus to be taking a clear leadership and perhaps even military role and that his death would be a sacrificial one on behalf of the people of Israel in a victorious battle over the oppressive Romans. Instead, Jesus was a friend to tax collectors and sinners, healer and teacher not of the rich and powerful but almost exclusively of the lowly and marginalized.
Jesus’ response to John here in Matthew 11 is telling. He simply points to what He’s already doing: “the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the deadare raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them” (Matthew 11:5). Jesus was saying, in effect, “This is the work I came to do.”
The Way of Holiness
Isaiah 35 speaks of a “Way of Holiness” where God transforms wilderness into flourishing land. We often want to determine our own rescue plan, but God offers us His Way instead—a Way demonstrated and paved by Jesus and which we advance along not with the certainty of sight, but with the assurance of faith that God graces us with in Christ.
When God Won’t Dance to Our Tune
Jesus confronts our expectations directly in Matthew 11:16- 19, comparing His generation to children in the Marketplace who complain: “We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.” We expect God to dance when we want; to mourn when we want. But these expectations do not define God’s realities. God won’t celebrate our worldly successes or languish with us over things we struggle to surrender. Instead, He calls us to the Way of Holiness.
The Unexpected Power of Prayer
James 5:7-20 reminds us that ‘the prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working’ (James 5:16). This might seem counterintuitive in our action-oriented world, but God’s reality often works differently than we expect. The most powerful thing I can do might very well be to love God and my neighbor through prayer. That is a reality that I would never have thought up on my own. But those expectations of mine do not define God’s realities.
Putting It Into Practice
Identify your expectations. What assumptions are you making about how God should work in your life? Write them down and hold them with open hands.
Embrace the pause. Sometimes God's first instruction is simply to stop and trust. As James 5:7 urges, “Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord.” When was a time you stopped and let the Lord work while you waited?
Look for God’s reality. Where might God already be working in ways you haven’t recognized? Where might He be calling you to patient waiting for Him to act outside of your control?
Practice faithful prayer. Instead of focusing solely on action, invest time in fervent prayer, trusting that this seemingly simple act carries tremendous spiritual power. What is your prayer life like now? Where do you need more faith that prayer matters?
Though the Christian life may look different than any of us expected it would, God’s reality works by His own ways and in His own time. Our calling is to trust that God knows what He’s doing and His realities are always best.