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Showing posts with the label Anticipation

Mindset = Expectation

All our words and acts are passing in review before God. (Ellen G. White) Talk and act like a person expecting to be judged by the Rule that sets us free. For if you refuse to act kindly, you can hardly expect to be treated kindly. Kind mercy wins over harsh judgment every time. (James 2:12-13) Expectation is a mindset that creates a sense of anticipation, is it not? When you invest your money in a fund, you anticipate a return. When you tell your teen to be home by curfew, you expect a timely return by that curfew end. What do we expect from each other? Those expectations create a mindset within that actually builds anticipation of some 'return'. We expect someone to be kind - revealed through kind words and deeds. This mindset is based on a form of hope. We could expect someone to act harshly, based on a set of expectations we have created about that person created from some character traits they exhibit. We have created a mindset based upon what we have observed. Because our...

Ever jump the gun?

Have you heard the term "jumping the gun"?  In sporting events such as the 100 yard dash, a starting block is placed on the ground, runners squarely planting their feet in those blocks in order to give them a little "launch" into the race, and then they await the firing of the starter's pistol.  The starter will be poised, ready to pull the trigger, and the runners will be determined to be the first off the blocks.  Sometimes the runners "jump the gun" though. They make a false start - long before the gun fires, they will launch from their starting position and into "action" down the track.  As they recognize their error, they stop short, return to the blocks, and assume the position again.  Do it often enough and the runner can sometimes be disqualified from the race by those who have oversight for the race.  Why? Those false starts signal you aren't really paying attention as you need to be and you are outside of the permitted behavior...

A new lamp

Have you ever had one of those moments when you know something and no one else in the group does?  You are almost chatting at the bit to get an opportunity to share it with someone, or perhaps you have been sworn to secrecy and cannot.  Either way, it is almost impossible to contain yourself. The information you possess is almost too big to be contained.  I think this is the way it is with what God gives us - it is almost too big for us to contain it! It leaves us feeling like we'd have to share it or we'd burst.  I like the analogy of heading off to the market one day in search of a new oil burning lamp for the homestead.  You have the anticipation of the journey - for you have a mission in mind.  You have the moment of exploration - for there are many lamps from which to choose.  You have the moment of choice - for just the right one has been selected.  You have the moment of expectation - for you can imagine the light it will bring to your hom...