Expect [ik-spekt]
Verb
"to look forward to; regard as likely to happen; anticipate the occurrence or the coming of"
The above definition was taken from Dictionary.com. I like what it has to say for the most part. When we expect something to happen we anticipate it, we look forward to it we do this because we think it’s likely to happen. I guess that’s where the definition goes a little sideways for me.
From a Biblical perspective the idea of expect carries with it something more than “likely” to happen. How about a “Confident Assurance” that something will happen!
Psalm 27:14 AMP reminds us…
"Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring. Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord."
When we wait for, hope for, expect the Lord we aren’t waiting for something “likely” to happen. We wait with “Confident Expectation.” In other words, it’s going to happen! We’re just waiting around until it does!
Remember when Moses led the children of Israel to the Red Sea? Water in front of them, Pharaoh’s army behind them. They were trapped, hemmed in, no way out. Their first response was to blame Moses, they said to Moses, “Why did you bring us out here to die in the wilderness? Weren’t there enough graves for us in Egypt? What have you done to us? Exodus 14:11 NLT
Well, what do you do if you are the leader? I don’t know if Moses was afraid but I do know that sometimes, as a leader, you must have the ability to at least hide your panic, and so he does.
“But Moses told the people, Don’t be afraid. Just stand still and watch the Lord rescue you today” Exodus 14:13 NLT. There you go, a simple three step process to overcome fear and expect the Lord. Let me outline it for you in case you missed it.
The Process
Don’t Fear!
Stand Still!
Watch This!
The process seems simple but we sometimes waiver in our faith, in our hope, in our expecting. But He does show up. He shows up time and time again. You can usually tell when God is about to do a miracle. It’s when the day is darkest. It’s when the circumstance seems impossible. It’s when everyone has started to complain. It’s when the end feels near.
In an excerpt from an article in “Today Tn The Word,” a researcher says, “A number of years ago researchers performed an experiment to see the effect hope has on those undergoing hardship. Two sets of laboratory rats were placed in separate tubs of water. The researchers left one set in the water and found that within an hour they had all drowned. The other rats were periodically lifted out of the water and then returned. When that happened, the second set of rats swam for over 24 hours. Why? Not because they were given a rest, but because they suddenly had hope! Today in the Word, May, 1990, MBI, p. 34
How do rats have hope? They have hope because they thought in their tiny little rat brains that if they could just hang in there for a little longer they expected to be pulled out of the water.
Questions:
1. Have you been pulled from the “water” lately?
2. What are you hoping or expecting for today?
3. Would you describe your hope as a Confident Expectation?