Exceeding Expectations

Exceeding Expectations

Let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.

It was kind of a flop. Not in an “I can’t show my face in public” kind of way, but rather in an “I had hoped for something more” way. A few weeks earlier, I had decided to invite the women of my church to a ladies’ night in. Our church didn’t have a women’s ministry, and I had begun to feel stirrings that women were missing out because of it, myself included. My casual event was one small step toward what I hoped would be deeper connections. So, feeling hopeful, I posted the event in our church’s social media group and enlisted the help of my friend Andrea.

Andrea came early to help cut up cheese and fruit, and we chatted as we waited for the doorbell to ring. As the hour arrived and women began to trickle through the door, I looked around and couldn’t help but feel a little stab of disappointment in my gut. Rather than the houseful of women I had hoped for, I had a handful.

I took a deep breath, welcomed the women, and enjoyed the next few hours of food and conversation. There were a couple of women I didn’t know well, and as the night progressed, I learned details of their lives I never would have known from passing conversation. As Andrea and I said goodbye to the other women and cleaned up, we talked incessantly. My contacts felt positively glued to my eyeballs, yet we still lingered, hesitant for the night to end.

Here is what I love about our God: when we are faithful to do what he asks us to do, he exceeds our expectations. From an outsider’s perspective, the night looked like a flop. But as the evening progressed and the conversation deepened, I felt profoundly thankful that I hadn’t missed the beauty of those connections because things didn’t look the way I had expected. The deep conversations were well worth the effort I’d put in, as was the one-on-one time with Andrea at the end of the evening. If we don’t give up on friendship, on trying, on doing what God asks us to do—he is faithful.

— Kristin

— Today’s Act of Friendship —

Invite someone you don’t know well to spend time with you.