Many of us wrestle with disappointment with God as we wander in the way. He doesn't always do what we want him to, or give us what we ask for, and sometimes that leaves us hurt, disillusioned, and confused. We aren't alone in this, Even the disciples felt this way, and they had Jesus right there with him. Yet even though Jesus is different than we thought, and different than we want, He is in fact better. He exceeds our expectations beyond our wildest dreams. We all come to Jesus because we want or need something from him, but as we follow Jesus, we slowly but surely realize that He is what we really want and really need, no matter how many of our expectations he doesn't meet, He is infinitely better , than we can ask think or imagine.

Different Than We Thought

They said You’d bring good news.

They said You’d overthrow oppressors.

They said You’d be a warrior.

They said You’d set captives free.

They said You’d cleanse the temple.

They said You’d lead the people.

They said You’d be the Shepherd.

They said You’d bring justice.

They said You’d judge the nations.

They said You’d be like Moses.

They said You’d be like Aaron.

They said You’d be like Elijah.

They said You’d be like David.

They said You’d be a Deliverer.

They said You’d be a Priest.

They said You’d be a Prophet.

They said You’d be the King.

You were.

You did.

Just not the way they expected.

Just not the way they wanted.

Different than they thought.

So they were all offended,

and they put You on the cross.

You upset.

You disappointed.

You inverted.

You turned the tables.

You flipped the script.

You washed feet.

You laid down Your life.

But little did they know—

this was no surprise.

This was not a loss.

It’s what You anticipated.

It’s exactly what You wanted.

It’s how You were exalted,

how Your true work was accomplished.

You overcame the powers, overthrowing spiritual darkness.

You set the captives free, delivering those bound in sin and death.

You healed the sick, cleansed the lepers.

You opened the eyes of the blind and the ears of the deaf.

You sat and ate with sinners, because they knew they should repent.

You were a great Warrior, fighting spiritual evil and opposing religious corruption.

You judged the nations with forgiveness to all who’d put their faith in You.

You are King of a spiritual Kingdom—spreading on earth as it is in heaven—

through love and self-sacrifice, not vengeance and force.

Through transformed hearts,

not tyrannizing systems.

The Messiah.

The Anointed.

The Chosen.

The Set-Apart One.

The Son of Man.

The Christ.

The Son of God.

Fulfiller of promises—

of the Torah, Law, and Prophets.

Filling full believers with Your Spirit

to carry on Your mission,

no matter what it costs.

Always getting better,

but different than we thought.

Here's a reflection and a poem I wrote about wrestling with the mystery and transcendence of who God is, the paradox's of His nature and His Word, and the tide of culture to wander away from God in the midst of wrestling with these realities, as opposed to wandering in the way.

This was my first spoken word poem, I wrote it about 4 years ago while in a discipleship program for a monthly gathering where I ended up sharing it. It was the events surrounding this poem that actually inspired me to begin writing poetry. I love hearing when these poems impact people, so if you enjoy it or are impacted by it, let me know :)