Greater Expectations

Expectations....

We all have them.

We expect others to live up to our standard of what we deem is acceptable in society. We expect our children to obey, mind their manners, do well in school, and the list goes on. We expect our friends to be there for us in the rough times. We expect our parents to be what we think a good parent is.

We expect so many things of others.

But...

What happens when those expectations are not lived up to?

What happens when the people we expect the most out of end up disappointing us?

On the flipside, what is expected of us? What do others deem as necessary for our lives?

or an even bigger question...

What do we expect of ourselves?

And what happens when we fail to live up to our own expectations?

We can spend our lives striving to live up to the expectations of those around us. We start as children being taught to obey our parents and authority figures in our lives. We want to please them and inwardly struggle when we fail to do that. We feel we've let them down and in turn work harder to please them even more. Later on in life we aim to please our employers to so we can maintain a job for security in life. We want to please our friends all throughout life so they'll remain our friends.

But somehow, through it all, we create a mental list of expectations for ourselves. We want to please and not disappoint others. We want to do well in life and succeed. We want to marry the right person, raise well-behaved children, have a nice home and vehicle or two, and have that dream career that has been inspiration to work hard. We want to say we're happy and content in the end.

And when those expectations aren't met what happens?

Disappointment, resentment, anger and other feelings begin to set in. We start failing to see what we do have and can be grateful for. Our hearts can be sad for a time but in the end we are responsible for how we live our lives.

It's a sad and slow process as those feelings of resentment, anger and disappointment engulf our hearts. We become blinded to what's good. No, you may not have your dream home but you do have a roof over your head. No, you may not have that new expensive car but you do have a car. You may struggle with your spouse or children but they still love you for who you are. No, you may not have the job you've always dreamed of but you have a job to pay the bills and put food on the table.


It's time to take a look at ourselves and realize what our expectations are. Are our expectations reasonable? Is it time to re-evaluate and figure out what really is important? Does it really matter what other people think of us?


What really matters?