expectations

I think sometimes I sell Jesus short. I'm like the crippled man Peter and John ran into on their way to afternoon prayers. Here's the nub of the story, from Acts 3:4-6: 

“Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, 'Look at us!' So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.

Then Peter said, 'Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.'"

This beggar wanted coins. He wanted a little something to buy food with. He accepted his disability; all of his dreams were now constrained within what he saw as an unchangeable reality.

But then, grace. The power of Jesus, given to his disciples to change lives and touch hearts, gave this man so much more than he ever imagined. 

That's me. I ask for daily bread and healing from my sniffles. I pray for incremental changes, small steps. I don't ask Jesus to blow up my life, because I don't think it's possible. So I limit not only my own experience, but what I contribute to God's people and the world.

I want more. I want Jesus to snatch me up into the glorious whirlwind of his redeeming work. I want to know firsthand his march through time and history, conquering and freeing and blessing as he goes. I want to be in the front ranks, at the tip of the spear. I want to be there when lives and changed and souls are won and evil goes down.

It's so easy to be complacent, to want another day of routine punctuated by pleasant meals and easy fellowship. It's easy to accept what I have as a blessed life, because I don't expect more.

But I'm too young to start coasting. God may choose to take me soon, but I probably have decades left to live. It can mean something, even in the same house and at the same job. God's kingdom goes forward here in Orange City, where there are sad and lonely and confused and hurt people.

Like the crippled man, I expect a little something to meet today's need. I don't expect Jesus to strike off my chains, knock down all the fences, and set me free to run after him. 

I don't expect that, but he can do it. I think all he's waiting for is for me to ask.