Unmet expectations, they say, lead to disappointment. And being let down leads to resentment.
The reason (even for many Christians) that so many people have resentment against God is because of unmet expectations — which can truly be deeply painful.
When we lose; when tragedy strikes; death gives us its sting…
…And God is quiet.
The Enemy takes new ground, and God is quiet still. We expected a rescue story! “Lord, where are you?”
You see, we expected God to catch us, but we fell.
Unmet expectations lead to disappointment. And disappointment leads to resentment, or even distrust.
Is everything a cosmic mistake? Am I a cosmic mistake? Does anything have a meaning?
Or worse, is God not good?
I have felt these questions, I bet you have too — or one day will, if you live long enough.
Here is what I personally keep coming back to:
1. Creation has a Creator.
When I look around at creation and cannot believe intellectually that there is no creative design behind it all.
Rather, behind all forces & creatures & beauty, I am confronted by spectacular design and meaning.
Every painting has a painter. The universe is too awesome to be a mistake, and so are you.
God is real, and He is on His throne.
2. There is a real spiritual war going on.
Sin has entered the world and has poisoned creation. Our bodies (cancer, disease, etc.), and our minds. We do evil things, and evil things happen to us. Life is war (Ephesians 6:12).
Here is the thing we are prone to forget, life on this side of heaven is full of suffering — because sin plagues creation, and we are locked in spiritual war.
Jesus told us we would suffer and have trials of various kinds (John 16:33), and that the one who endures to the end will be saved (Matthew 24:13).
When we forget that life is war (and forget that heaven is where comfort and peace remain), our expectations of comfort, peace and goodness lead to disappointment when casualties fall.
This is why we resent God, and are tempted to doubt: We expect a garden, but live in a battlefield.
3. God has proved His heart.
If God is real, and terrible evil takes place every day), is God good?
If He is strong and in control, why does He allow tragedy and war to remain?
Many questions are left unanswered, but God proved His goodness by stepping into our mire, through the person and work of Jesus.
Let this land on your heart afresh:
While we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:7–8).
God proved He is FOR you by securing all the things you have been longing for:
Victory — advancing the Kingdom and glory of God. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame (Colossians 2:15). (We all want victory / success, God accomplished it fully and finally in a way hard to comprehend).
Justice — all evil fully and finally dealt with, either on the cross or on that Day. Not one evil (that we have done, or done to us), will be swept under the rug.
God’s favor and smile — because we have been justified, we have peace with God (Romans 5:1).
Hope, comfort, and joy — rescuing us from what we were, and what we could have been. “No one will take your joy from you” (John 16:22).
Adventure and delight — in His presence there is fullness of joy; at His right hand are pleasures forevermore (Psalm 16:11). He came so we would have life abundantly (John 10:10).
Lewis ends Narnia this way. Everything the children had lived through during the Narnia series turns out to have been only like a cover and the title page.
The real adventure was just beginning: “Chapter One of the Great Story which no one on earth has read.” In heaven, the adventure goes on forever, he says, and every chapter is better than the last.
God has accomplished all these things and more through the person and work of Jesus Christ.
Closing:
A pastor that I’m acquainted with, named Joe, lost his wife to cancer. He was left alone to raise their young children.
If anyone had earned the right to be bitter, it was Joe. If anyone had the evidence to take God to court, it was him. Joe had fasted and prayed with his church, but God didn’t answer. His wife was taken by the cancer, and his children lost their mom.
Instead, Joe wrote this on his brides tomb-stone:
“I will never exchange what I know about God, for what I do not.”
This man refused to let what he couldn’t see overrule the part he did.
Though this world is broken and on fire with suffering and disappointment, make no mistake:
God is on the move, rescuing His people for good and not evil, and is inviting us into a delightful adventure.
It may not be easy; suffering and disappointment are promised along the way.
But my prayer is that it would not make us cynical or resentful of God.
For:
- Creation has a Creator, Jesus (Hebrews 1, John 1, Colossians 1).
- There is a true war going on. The stakes are high, but God will be victorious.
- He has proved His love (Romans 5:7–8).
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