I love the story of Jesus’ first recorded miracle. He was at a wedding with his mom. When the party ran out of wine, Jesus turned approximately 180 gallons of water into the very best wine. I’m sure it was an excellent party!
The thing that strikes me about the story is that Jesus is not the one who determined the quantity of wine that was created. That was completely up to the servants who went to fetch the water. How much wine did Jesus create? He created as much wine as the water they brought. His provision was proportional to their expectation.
This has application in many areas of life, but I’ve been thinking about hearing God’s voice and my observation is that this principle of expectation is extremely relevant to our experience of hearing God’s voice.
Most people that I speak to who struggle to hear God’s voice don’t expect to hear God’s voice. They don’t bring much water so they don’t get much wine. If they want to hear God’s voice with more frequency, clarity, and specificity, they need to adjust their expectations accordingly.
This implies that I can choose what I expect. Many don’t view their expectations in this way. Instead, expectations are simply the inevitable results of past experiences. I expect to experience what I have previously experienced. In this view, I am a victim of my past experiences and I will never step into anything other than what I’ve previously walked in. But what if that’s not true?
What if, though I’ve never previously seen water turn to wine, I still have the power to choose to bring water to Jesus anyway? What if I can choose my expectations? I think I can. More than that, I think I have. Here’s what I mean. If I can choose my expectations, then perhaps I have chosen my expectations. If I see my expectations as being subject to my experiences, perhaps I have chosen to submit my expectations to my experiences. Perhaps I have chosen to allow my experiences to have authority in my life. Perhaps I’ve chosen this so consistently for so long that it really doesn’t feel like a choice anymore. It has simply become the lens through which I view reality. If I remain in the grip of this assumption, I will remain a victim of my past experiences. My past experiences (or the lack thereof) will actually be lord of my present and my future.
If you’ve struggled in the past to hear God’s voice. Today you can make a choice that this past experience does not have authority over your present expectations. Instead, you can determine that God is in charge. His word is authoritative! Does God’s word tell you that you can hear God’s voice? (Read John 10) If so, then perhaps you should start hauling some water!
