It is Target’s motto that their customers should Expect more. Pay less. But, here I challenge you (and myself) to have fewer (not lower) expectations and be willing to pay more in prayer.
Through my past trips and travels I have learned that some things are best left unprepared for. This is not so as to be foolish, but rather to be more willing to deal with situations as they come to you, and being willing to be more reliant on God’s providence rather than your pre-made lists. Look at it as similar to the folly of expectant parents painting the baby’s room a gentle pink, getting the doll-friends for the newborn, and looking up only girl names, all the while deciding to not “know” the sex of the baby, but simply because they want a girl, they prepare a space for the potential “her”. (Hopefully expectant parents are not so foolish to do this, choosing a neutral green or yellow instead.)
However, we are so foolish when we make our strict lists of goals and expectations. Now, don’t get me wrong, some preparation is necessary and good. Looking at the preparation that went into my coming trip to Europe has been great and led to good and necessary positioning of my heart, as well as awareness of certain potential safety issues and precautions to take (vaccines and what not). But, there are physical expectations, and then there are strict positions of the heart and mind, which may seem to get you “prepared” but truly only build roadblocks to roads un-pre-examined.
This notion of expect less-pray more came from the leader of my trip to Angola State Penitentiary last spring break, Dave Haidle. The biggest reason Dave encouraged us to not go in with expectations (an attitude he further nurtured by not giving us much information about the goings-on of the trip before hand, and not telling many stories of past years, as well as generally not allowing those who had done the trip in the past to repeat it) was to counter-act societal preconceptions of prisoners or inmates. The US fosters this visage of monsters, both inhumane and inhuman. However, just as they have sinned, we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Thus, we can look at the expect less mentality, at least in the Angola example, as Christ asking those without sin to throw the first stone.
Expectations can get stoney. If I go to Europe expecting and assuming spiritual dead numbness of each staunchly post-modern European I come across, how will I deal with the vivacious girl who finds happiness and a God in the spring-leaved trees? How will I deal with the conservative guy who has forgotten how to love like Christ but claims affinity with Christianity? How can I expect the unexpected if I have already stoned to death the possibilities not on my list?
God is creative and He continues to create. I pray that He may create, continually, in me an open heart that He would give me open ears, and a clear channel of His wisdom, the only coverall for any situation. I surrender my expectations and take on a prayerful heart and mind, relying on His infinite love to teach me how to love the person, the soul in front of me.
I close with passing on another challenge I’ve just had from Francis Chan in his amazing book Crazy Love. I challenge you to stop praying for safety, but instead pray that God will make you ever more reliant on Him in the least expected and most humbling ways. How can we ready our souls to fall prostrate before the Throne if we are stuck boxing the Spirit through our confining expectations? Imagine failing to humble yourself before the heavenly throne because you’re stuck looking at the Lords face thinking, “Wait, he’s not white with long flowing silver locks?” Come to know God by knowing that you do not and cannot know all.
So, paint your walls that neutral green or yellow and expect nothing but His love and providence.
To you: peace, patience, and a dangerous love that makes you ever more reliant on Him.
C’est tout pour maintenant. That’s all for now.
Jason
Mon Dieu, aide-moi de devenir
un homme de paîx, de patience,
de prière, et de passion. Amen.
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