“But as for me, I will watch expectantly for the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation. My God will hear me. Do not rejoice over me, O my enemy. Though I fall I will rise; though I dwell in darkness, the Lord is a light for me.” (Micah 7:7-8)
What does it mean to be expectant?
The first thing that comes to my mind is the ability to have full confidence in the Lord’s provision. When I expect something, I’m not hoping for a chance that it might happen. I’m not doubting it or making backup plans just in case it doesn’t work out. Instead, I put my full trust in and center all of my plans around it, due to my absolute certainty that it will take place.
We know that God has good in store for those who love Him, and we know that He hears us. So when we pray, we can do so expectantly, waiting with the assurance that He will take care of us.
Things will not always happen the way we want them to, but this doesn’t have to lessen our faith in God. He knows what we need, even when it makes zero sense to us. The other day I was thinking about some events in my life that, if you had told me about them ahead of time, I would have thought that there was no way anything good could come of them. When praying “Your will be done”, I would have wanted to add “except that, of course”. I wouldn’t have been able to imagine any way where they could possibly be in God’s will.
And yet, God has surprised me. He has worked in my life in amazing ways that I never would have expected. So, I can say that no matter what, we absolutely can trust God’s will for us, because even if the worst-case scenario happens, no circumstance can stop God from redeeming our situation for His glory and our good. Because of this I can wait for His will expectantly, joyfully, and assuredly.
When we come before God expectantly, it means that regardless of our doubts or fears, we’re posturing ourselves before Him in a way that says that we believe wholeheartedly. That we are putting it all on the line for Him, because we are just that sure that we can trust Him.
I believe that when we do this, despite our human weaknesses, God will meet us where we are and help us to trust Him, to see His goodness. So, I’ve been working on committing myself to expectancy, to acting and speaking and praying in a way that says that I have no reason to doubt my God’s goodness and His plans to do amazing things both in my life and in the lives of those around me.
What does it mean to be victorious?
There will be failures in this life – but those failures will never have the final word. The enemy cannot rejoice over us; while we may fall, we know that we will rise. Even when everything around us is wrong, and scary, and troubling – when we are dwelling in darkness – we can be confident the Lord hears us, protects us, and provides us with victory.
I’m not talking about barely making it out alive, or about a bittersweet ending. I’m talking about victory. It’s going to be difficult, and there will be days where it’s hard to feel victorious. But those moments don’t have to fill us with hopelessness. We can still watch expectantly for the Lord, excited and joyful at the victory that we know is to come.
No matter how many times Satan tries to lead us astray, no matter how many times we make mistakes, this victory is ours. Although we still live in a world that is burdened by sin, pain, and struggle, we know that Satan has already been defeated by Jesus’ sacrifice and by the Holy Spirit’s indwelling within us. Because of this we can wait for the Lord’s return confidently, fully assured that we will – and already do – have the victory in Him.
The Girl that Jesus Loved 