Expectations: The story of Naaman

In high winds on Friday. I saw two things I've never seen before. I'm not sure I want to see them again. I didn't take the interstate heading home because I thought it was going to be too windy. So I took Sooner Road and down about 7. Came up on a trampoline sitting in the middle of sin Road. It looked like you could have gotten out and dumped around there if you want to do for a while, it got worse, as I went on into Guthrie, on the east side of the road, though, the Highline wires were actually hitting each other and sparking and smoking. And I had heard about that. I'd see it on TV before, but I've never seen it up close and personal. And again, I don't want to do that again.

They're so I'll go on YouTube and you can find about anything. You want to find there. There's a young couple on there that did they just kind of do humorous? Been. Yes and it's so this, the weight lady comes out in and she says, what do you think? And the husband stop Serenity says, well, do you want the husband answer? Do you want the petty answer or do you want the truth and see says, what's the husband answer? Answer is the length is perfect and it doesn't make you look fat. What's the penny answer? All the colors remind me of a cartoon character. She said well what's the truth may said? I don't care.

Here, young married person, he will learn that maybe for a video, that's funny. But in real life or better not do that, that's not going to get you very far. We have certain expectations and usually we were asked those loaded questions. We know what the answer is supposed to be and most of us being intelligent. I provide the the anticipated answer and things go fairly well. Certain answer is expected and we do the same things, we have interaction. So how you doing doing great. You don't want none of that. May be actually be true. It's not that we're lying about that. We're just trying to respond when the unexpected kind of way. I love that question. Don't you think, don't you think? And that's the that's the warning that there's this person to the tell you what they think you're supposed to think and then you have to decide will do I just go along with that or do I try to move in another kind of Direction there? And it's all based on expectations. we spent a lot of Our Lives wrestling with expectation and Shakespeare would say that, that expectations of the things that destroy life. And expectations can be pretty powerful and they can certainly complicate our lives. They can get into all kinds of areas expected. This person to be a job to be better. I expected this community to be this or that or whatever. And over and over again, we can look at things that we thought we were going to be able to count on that. It didn't turn out exactly the way that I expected it to. I told you before, back with me, you hadn't been married very long, we friends and they had a little boy about 3 years old. And the mom ran over his tricycle and it was just a mess. And the little boy was like no worries, dad can fix it. And the whole day it was like, you know, you got such a big disappointment coming because you're going to find out something about your dad that you didn't know before. I can't leave everything. And so is that such patiently, really kind of got crushed their you've heard this before, but let me share it with you.

Gone is the city gone. The day yet. Still the story in the be nice today. Once were a prophet in the Palm shadbase a traveler chance at new interests of smiles. What sort of people made, baby? He asked in this proud City on the plains or spread both friend wants to watch Sword. The Pac-Man scowled one knaves and fools. You'll find the people here the same. Another stranger the dust roomier and pausing cried your bright city. Were Ian Towers or was both friend? What sort of people from whence, you came. So work. Good truan was you'll find the same here. The wise men said, we get caught up in expectation sometimes and there's all kinds of research material and and various kinds of things like that. Terry has this will sign in the backyard. That says unruly children will be used as weed Pickers. And these people to come over to our house and sold Warriors in the backyard. He came back and he's worse than weeds. It's very sad cuz I'm truly and I'll figure. I'll be picking weeds.

If it was really some kind of sad about that too that he used himself as somebody who's going to be in trouble really quickly at 8, we can ask them all those expectations that he's coming in. Sometimes people build us up to the point where we think Sam is going to be incredible that movie O Brother, Where Art Thou? I heard so many wonderful things about that show and I was so excited to see it. Then at the end of it, I thought though brother, I want you back and I think I really would have if I hadn't heard it was so incredible to me, sometimes our expectations can work against us. Sometimes we get our feelings hurt. Sometimes we get angry at other people, we have damaged relationships, because somebody didn't do what was expected, or maybe we didn't do what the other person expected. Remember those things are our Creations. They're not real. There's things that we comprise in her mind of the way things ought to be. And when it's not that way, it's disappointing and frustrating.

Same is true in the room of religion people decide that something needs to be different in their lives. I need a spiritual basic need a spiritual score need a spiritual connection to feel early on and they try to establish that and frequently a really frustrated because it doesn't meet their expectations. Now those expectations may have been given to them by someone else, there may be the basis for the misinformation, any number of things but I find so many people get frustrated with religion because it doesn't mean what they thought. It was going to be.

Jesus. Try to help us temper. Our expectations, his story does the fact that he was killed rejected because he didn't meet some people's expectations in John. 16:33 I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace in this world. You will have trouble, but take heart. I have overcome the world. There's no misunderstanding what Jesus saying there, if your expectation is that Christianity is always going to be bright Rosie, wonderful, Jesus, a kiss. That's don't the reality. That it's not saying that Christianity isn't that way in moments and times and ultimately be that way terminally. But in this life is Jesus, is there's going to be trouble, there's going to be things, you're going to have some hardships with. These are difficult to work through. Very easy to get spoiled and I have unrealistic expectations. Most of us have had the privilege of having breakfast in bed, maybe your father's day or something unique like that. What if your spouse just fix breakfast in bed and they did it in the next day or the next day off, for a couple months, they fix breakfast in bed, Barn, tea everyday. At the end of the second month, they don't do it anymore. Where's my breakfast? You get used to it. It's like I've been doing you a favor. I've been doing something nice for you for very long. It's kind of easy to fall into that place. When we start to expect things because things have been done for some of those things are pure GIFs. And nobody's obligated to share those things at all. There is a story, an Old Testament story that fits exactly with what I'm talking about today. So, maybe you've already thought of it. It's from 2nd Kings, chapter 5, the story of Naaman, the leper. Let's go there in first one and then we'll go down to go 450. First 14, When was commander of the army of the king of Arab, he was a great man inside of his master and highly-regarded, because through him, the Lord had given Victory to Arrow. He was a valiant Soldier but he had leprosy were introduced to Aaron out to name and told about him very important phrase. There is it. God has to work through him even in another context and I'd like to have time to go there, but we do today. But remember this passage is making that clear to us. He has a disease. Now, bands of Raiders from aramid gone out and taken captive. But young girl from Israel and she served a man's wife. She said to her mistress, if only my master would see the prophet who is in Samaria, he would cure him of his leprosy name and went to his master. I told him what the girl from Israel it said by all means do the king of beer in reply. I will send the letter to the king of Israel so damn and left taking with him. Ten talents of silver, 6000 chicles of gold in ten sets of clothing. The levity took to the king of Israel red with this letter. I am sending my servant named and to you so that you make cure him of his leprosy. But you know exactly what the king is going to do a panic. As soon as the king of Israel, read the letter, he tore his robes and said, am I God, can I kill and bring back to life? Why does this fellow send someone to me to be cured of his leprosy? See, he is trying to pick a quarrel with me, and that's what the king expected expected this other politician to be manipulative. He expected them to put them in some kind of trap, and that's the way you read it, and that's the way he interpreted it. Mercy. When Elijah, the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his robes. He seen him. This message. I have the man come to me and he will know there's a real full name and went with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elijah's house. Elijah's in a messenger. Be careful digineer. Send a messenger to say to him, go wash yourself, seven times in the Jordan and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed. But Naaman went away. Angry and said, I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call the name of the Lord. Is God wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy man. I had to weigh this was going to go. I'm going to ride in there and this rate probably just going to come out email, do all kinds of incantations, the email through all kinds of Phrases for respect.

And Elijah didn't go out there and I got to go wash in the river. And he goes on to say or does are not Obama and par for the Damascus. Better than all the Waters of Israel. Goodnight wash in them and be cleansed. So he went off in a rage name of service. Said to him my father the prophetess told you to do some great thing. Would you not have done it? How much more than when he tells us? Why should be cleansed? So he went down and dipped himself in the Jordan. Seven times is the man of God. I told him at his flesh of restored and he became clean like that of a young boy. If you're in the rest of the chapter name of this very, very convinced about the God of Israel and how he's going to serve and move in that particular direction chance. He almost missed the chance to be healed because it didn't go the way that he wanted all the way he expected it to go. And I think we can see ourselves in that sometimes, Or did you do this for me? And God begins to lead us in a path that moves in that direction. That ultimately bring us to that point and we go exactly what I had in mind. I didn't want to go this route. I didn't want it to take this long. I didn't want it to be this complicated. I didn't want it to hurt this much. I didn't want this. I didn't want that. I had a preconceived idea but the way I wanted it to be in when it's not. Frustrated and disappointed. Did you look at the story and you see all these main characters? But their to actual minor characters that are of utmost importance to the store? First? One, of course, it's a little girl. How has she gotten into demons house? She was kidnapped from her home by raiding parties, and forcibly, take it against her will to live and serve and work in another country in another culture. Could you been just a little bit unhappy about that? What is she at her name and has leprosy? And thought good to hear baby in her eyes, but for some reason, she's come to have connection. It appears, she even has have has some affection for these people and she says, if only my master could beat the profit, if only my master could get this problem before, God, if only my master could go to the people of God. So that those people could take her to the power of God. And will be look at this story. I don't see myself as damn and I don't see myself as a kid and I don't see myself any of those, but I can easily see myself in these two rolls. There's a big problem in my life and I think I need to do this. I think it says, or the possibility of God, What if you put God into the equation, what I'm arguing this morning is that when people have problems and issues in their lives and their life isn't going the way they expected it to go. We can say, have you thought about the people of God? Have you thought about God and his role in this? Are you willing to go that route or at least consider. And then look at the second minor character. Not actually one, but the men of Naman with this whole thing happens with Elijah, he's just angry, he's just mad. Lots of things I could have done. Why didn't he ask me to do that? And I'm guessing here that these soldiers of his are really showing some courage with a step forward and say, have you thought about She doing it. You know, if he told you the to swim the deepest ocean, you would have done it. If he tells you to find the highest mountain, you were tried it. I think it took some real courage to step up. Okay, you now know what God wants you to do. All you need to do is go ahead and do it. It's really kind of simple in the whole context. And I think that's another critical role that we can play in this process as people turn to God. God is people read things or, or hear things? Or try to interpret. What God's Will and God's message is the place where there they're turning back or, or moving away from that. We can fill that role of thing.

You know what the suggestion is just?

If it doesn't work and we have an opportunity on a regular basis to play both of these roles, this comes up in life, these interactions and we get a chance to do exactly that.

Okay. As the conclusion this morning. let's say, I decide that I'm going to Feed the deer in my neighborhood, you know, so far feel sorry for the deer. So you know, I get to their food and not every day but a week sometime between 3 and 5. I went out and throw some deer food in the are sometimes this way to back. Sometimes it's in the middle. I don't do it everyday cuz I can't manage it everyday. My neighbor few houses down cuz I want to do that but it won't do it the right way. I don't feed those deer everyday at 5 in the same spot, so they'll know exactly where to eat at your food. Now. Let's say we both do that for like 60 days. And then we both quit doing that.

How long are the deer going to continue to come to the two houses?

No, the house would they've been fed every day at 5. It's good to be the one that they drop out of first. because, State expected to be there, and when they come in, it's not there. It's like things have changed. And it's like, you know, we need to check tomorrow because some days she didn't bring it out here.

And so literally four months, the wild animals would come and look for this partial reinforcement and why is that? Well, the behavioral scientist call it, the frustration Factor, other people call it, the disappointment Factor. And the reality is we have to work through some frustration and disappointment, it doesn't always go the way we planned for the go. Often, it has to be altered on the Fly. There has to be mid-course directions. There are things that come up that no one could have planned for. And so, if we were riding along and we're riding in face, okay? We've hit another snag. We've hit another day delay. We've hit another detour, but I'm going to stay with God, and I'm going to let him work this out because I believe that he can and he will And I overcome my frustration and I overcome my disappointment. I get to work. God wants me to be. Two passages in the lesson is yours. Romans 1:9 and 10 to the god. Whom I serve in my spirit, in preaching, the gospel of his son, is my witness constantly. I remember you in my prayers at all times and I pray that now At Last by God's will, the way may be open for me. I need to come to you. Also, I want to come to Rome, Nothing.

In Chains. He comes as a prisoner. You think Paul had any inkling? When you wrote that down? That when he showed up and roam, he'd be in captivity.

But it still has this incredibly positive fulfillment because of the work that Paul's able to do in Rome. And God when he heard that prayer, said don't have a little differently than that. But it's going to happen and Paul had enough space to say, I don't care if I'm a prisoner or not. This is an opportunity for me to

so, you Corinthians 8 verse 5, And they expected are they exceeded our expectations? Also, the macedonians they gave themselves first of all, to the Lord and then by the will of God also to us, Also, built over there and thought, why were they giving themselves fully to the Lord? This morning, we invite you to just exactly that. If you need to give yourself to the Lord, would encourage you to take that action right now, while we send us sing together,