Expectations: Trust God's Story

Megan Vareha
Aug 13, 2018
2 min read

I think we all experience restless times in our lives where we build up expectations for a certain event. Maybe we have a very clear vision of what our first day at a new job will look like, or perhaps there’s a major gathering we’re looking forward to. We plan and prepare, and spend the upcoming days, weeks, and months playing out various scenarios for how this event or phase in our lives will occur. In the meantime, we spend our days living in the future, while the present is quite literally our future, playing out in front of us.

As the writer of this blog, I have no room to criticize. I myself am quite guilty of doing the very things I write about. In this case, I confess my obsessive need to plan and map every detail of every anticipated encounter, even the ones I find unlikely. So be informed: I am not experienced in this realm. But I think it’s a habit significant enough to require some serious attention.

I once read that the only way to live as the best-version-of-yourself in any given moment is to be fully immersed in the present. It only makes sense; how can you fully appreciate and soak in your life if you are removed from it? Living in the past often brings doubt and regret, and even when it yields pleasant nostalgia, it brings along feelings of desire to be in a different place. Living in the future, on the other hand, might bring excitement and hope, but is only coupled with a sense of longing for that which is yet to come. So we see, only by living in the present can we reach fulfillment.

Now, I’m not saying we shouldn’t ever reminisce over happy memories or plan an exciting event for the future. In fact, doing those very things can allow oneself to live in the present, especially when completed in a sense of joy. I only warn against consistent tendencies to toss one’s mind into place removed from the present, since in doing so, we can often forget about the blessings of our current surroundings, including those friends and family members who may not be around forever.

Maybe we should adopt new tendencies, and rely less on our own inclinations and thoughts. After all, we have a Creator who knows us inside and out, who has counted every hair on our heads, who created us for His glory and with His best intentions in mind.

He knows our story. Why should we write it?