Am I Failing God's Expectations?

We may worry whether we please God, whether we are meeting His expectations, or whether we are doing enough. We may worry that He is disappointed because we are still wrestling with a sin, with forgiveness or some other struggle. We may worry that we aren't going to be in "good standing" when our life on this earth ends.

There's good news! God loves us and He doesn't base His love on what we “do or don't” accomplish. He doesn't love us based upon our productivity. He doesn't love us based upon our successes. He loves us based upon our hearts. We read in 1 Samuel 16:7, "The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

And we read in Micah 6:8, "He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."

He required the same from Israel as we see in Deuteronomy 10:12, “What does the Lord your God ask of you but to have reverent awe for the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul."

God desires our heart. He desires that we love Him just as He loves us as Jesus teaches us in Matthew 22:37-39, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind."

Jesus doesn't stop there, he continues in the next two verses, "This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself."

When we love God, we also love all that He created including our fellow human beings. He doesn't require us to love what He did not create in them such as sin, delusion or rejection, but He does want us to have concern for all people and pray for them.

In order for us to love God, we must have a relationship with Him. In order to have a relationship, we must seek Him and get to know Him. This requires spending time with Him in conversation through prayer where we share our thoughts, our questions, our needs, and our thankfulness. Getting to know God also requires time spent reading His Word where He reveals Himself to us through the power of the Holy Spirit.

As a byproduct of seeking and loving God, we will naturally desire to honor Him and desire to become more like Jesus Christ. We will bear the fruits of the Holy Spirit which include love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. (Galatians 5:22-23)

All that God requires from us is in our heart because what is IN the heart will FLOW from the heart just as God's Word teaches us in Proverbs 4:23, "Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it."

And Jesus shares more about this truth in Luke 6:43-45,

[43] “No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. [44] Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. [45] A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of."

So God doesn't require us to jump through hoops. He doesn't require us to start a ministry or a non-profit. He doesn't require us to be perfect and flawless on the day we leave this world. God doesn't require us to perform, to be a superstar or to save the world. He doesn't require us to say "yes" to every volunteer opportunity. He only requires our devoted heart. We can never disappoint Him when we have that heart for Him because all that we do will flow from it...and that is all that He expects from us.
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