I thought that might get your attention. I have been working a lot on my resignation. Before you run and call somebody, keep reading. The word resignation is usually used in conjunction with employment, or for the impulsive, can mean unemployment. The word resignation actually has a broader meaning than just giving formal notification of quitting a job. It actually means compliance, submission and acceptance.
So much of the difficult and painful emotions I have experience are somehow tied to unmet expectations. I have expectations of myself and I have expectations of others. I don’t think having expectations is such a bad thing. The problem I’m beginning to discover is that I live with so many expectations of people, circumstances and situations of my life that are - unrealistic. The harsh reality is that so many of my life experiences rarely meet my expectations. It’s a perfect setup for a major letdown.
I expect that all things should go smooth. All new products should work. Traffic should move. I expect all people to be nice. I expect to be liked, listened to, and loved. I expect to be respected, revered, and at times, even coddled. People should anticipate my every need and above all, should never disappoint me.
I have no idea where all these unrealistic expectations come from? It seems that so much of my anger, frustration, and disappointments are somehow tied to unmet, unrealistic expectations.
What would life be like if we started each day by resigning?
I resign myself to the changes I don’t see coming. I resign myself to submitting to God’s agenda for my day. I resign myself to accepting the unforeseen and the unexpected. I resign myself that some things are going to go well today and others are not. I resign myself that others (including myself) are flawed, imperfect people and will, at times, disappoint me.
I am beginning to see that the pathway to peace is through resignation. Rather than holding my world hostage while shaking a list of demands in its face, I am trying something new; releasing my grip and resigning to the fact that this world (and the people in it) are imperfect and will never fully meet my every need – real or unrealistic. Accepting that things should go reasonably well today - but may not - allows margin for real life to unfold.
This was a hard thing for me to understand as well, being the type A I am, until I was in a car accident and was basically out of commision for 2 years. The thing I realized was life went on without ME doing all the things I did. Others got the jobs all done, of course not as well I would have done them, lol, but they were done never the less. We don't live with perfect people in a perfect world (yet). I have also learned now when things start to get crazy, rither I have bitten off more than I should have or I need to delegate something to others, which is very hard for me but we can't do everything ourselves or God would have stopped with Adam.
Barbara
Posted by: Barbara Belgrave | March 13, 2008 at 07:06 AM
Well, I believe God made us all imperfect to keep us humble so that everyday we surrender to the only truly perfect person Jesus Christ. Nobody blames you for wanting perfection, part of being a faithful Christ follower is the yearning to be like Him. In fact, we STRIVE to be like Him. Of course our shortcomings always fall inbetween us and reaching that goal. God made us this way, full of imperfections, and because of that we need to embrace them as they are part of God's perfect plan. We all love you for how much you have put into creating a beautiful atmosphere for worship. Notice that it's not really how "perfect" it all is, but really how much you've "put into it" that has earned all the recognition and respect from others. Thats where your heart is, and others see that in you. Perfection aside, it's the love, time, and commitment that you've given that is your true service to the Lord.
Posted by: Heather | March 14, 2008 at 02:07 PM
Let me touch him for sure. Ew.
Posted by: Joanne | January 22, 2009 at 02:36 PM
Wow, what perfect timing. I work at home and the computer server just went down, I thought what the heck, I will read some blogs. And I came across "resignation." My morning started with my oldest teenage daughter pushing my buttons, a doctors appointment (doctor was running behind) and now that I can finally work, server being down. I was sitting here pretty steamed, nothing in my morning has gone as I expected or wanted it to. In my mind, I would get up, get the kids off to school uneventfully, go for a short doctor appointment, and work. Didn't happen. My friend used to have a mantra "low expectations." He was always a pretty calm guy. I myself have been called high strung. ugh. I prayed about my daughter and I think God thought that situation was more important than me having the day go as I planned. There was an unforeseen conversation I had to have with her. And now as I wait for the server to come back up, I am looking outside at the sunshine (yes, sunshine!!!) and happy that I stumbled across your post. Thank you, thank you, thank you for reminding us to not expect a smooth life but to "roll with it" with God as my guide. Leanne
Posted by: Leanne Wesley | March 18, 2009 at 12:56 PM