How To Deal With Unmet Expectations

A lesson from an often neglected Old Testament prophet

Malachi 4:2 (ESV) "But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall."

The Struggle with Waiting

I've never been patient. Especially when I've been promised something, as the waiting is agonizing. While waiting, I can create my own expectations around what was promised. Unmet expectations can result in doubt. These doubts can quickly turn into anger, frustration and resentment. This cycle of expectation, disappointment, and doubt is something I've wrestled with time and again, and I suspect I'm not alone in this struggle.

(Source: Horne, Charles, and Julius Bewer. The Bible and Its Story: Prophets–Gospels, Ezekiel to Matthew Family Record. Vol. 8. New York, NY: Francis R. Niglutsch, 1909.)

The Promise and the Silence

Today, we turn to the final chapter in the Old Testament, Malachi 4. The Old Testament leaves us with a faithful promise from God, that He would right all that is wrong with both jus…