Right Things from the Wrong Place

If we are not careful, we look to our family to meet our deepest needs – this is something only God can do. When we expect our family to come through for us and meet our needs, we drain the joy out of our family circle. We have deep needs for security and significance – these were meant to be met by God, not our family (or anyone else). Learning to deal with expectations in faith (not demanding is key to having healthy, growing family relationships. My circle gets is filled with un-pleasantries when I… • Use others to meet my needs without considering them • Intend to draw my resources for living from them, not from God • Expect too much out of my spouse or children or siblings. Demanding that… o They make us feel okay about ourselves (if they criticize, then BOOM!) o Pump us up and feel important (and they don’t think much about us at all) Genuine faith helps me to give my expectations to God as something I desire and focus on refreshing others.