Great Expectations

Every woman has expectations in her life: what she will be when she "grows up", who she will marry, what kind of home in which she will live, how many children she will have, etc. Recently, though, I have begun to realize that one of the things God asks a woman to surrender are her expectations. Have you ever paused to consider how silly some expectations of a husband are? "My husband needs to be tall." "My husband has to have blue eyes." "My husband needs to have attended a Christian college." "My husband needs to be rich." "My husband has to have such-and-such a personality." Woe be unto the men in our lives if they do not live up to our "expectations"!

Yet, God asks us to give Him our expectations, and as we surrender those to Him, we begin to realize how silly some of those expectations really are. Now, I'm not talking about standards, such as marrying a strong Christian, marrying someone who shares your life vision, etc. I'm talking about the "non-essentials" that sometimes we think are so essential. God may just turn to you (as He has to me) and say, "Put down your silly expectations and trust me! See what I have in store for your life!" I shudder to think of how different my life would be if God had allowed me to choose my life partner from among the guys I "liked"! I would have looked at my non-essential "essentials" list and been well-pleased, yet none of them (while definately worthy men)were God's choice. While I am still waiting, my list of "essentials" has changed drastically to encompass what God knows that I need, rather than what I think I "want."

Will you, dear girl, let God take your list of expectations and "essentials" and submit them to His will? You may turn around and see God's "unexpected" surprise for your life.

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