Below is an artical from The Resurgence by Brandon House. Brad House is one of the pastors at Marshill Church in Seattle and has written a book all about Community and it’s one of the newest Re:lit books it will be releasing at the end of the week. Find out more about the book here.

Expectation is a lost art. Personally, I gravitate toward pessimism and fatalism. These are the antithesis of expectation. They expect little and have a nasty habit of causing me surprise when God moves in extraordinary ways. For me (and I suspect the case is similar for those that resonate with this confession), these inclinations are directly related to my faith in God not only as a powerful God but also as a loving, caring Father (Eph. 3:14-19).

Expectation Can Be Good

When I go on a consulting trip, I like to leave a gift for the kids under their pillow. As I got ready for my last trip, my eldest came up to me with an expectant smile and shyly asked what would be under his pillow when I left. I was bummed at first because I wanted them to be surprised. But then it hit me. This was not greed… it was expectation. My kids had an expectation because they knew my love for them. They expect a hug and kiss when I leave for work, they expect to wrestle when I get home, and they expect a gift under their pillow when I travel because they have faith in my love as their father.

When we understand community as a gift of God for our sanctification and as a proclamation of the gospel then we anticipate our community group with an expectation of the extraordinary. We should not be surprised by the work of God in our group (Eph 2:10). We should expect it. God has ordained that his purposes would be worked out through the community of his people, “for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.”- Phil 2:13 (NIV)

Lead with Expectation

Therefore, we can lead your community group with an expectation that God is going to:

• Reconcile broken relationships
• Answer prayer
• Bring people to repentance
• Save your lost neighbors
• Bring life through your community
• Change your neighborhood

When I expect God to move in extraordinary ways in my community group, I lead differently. I am more excited to see what he is going to do rather then focused on the sacrifices. I am bolder and more prepared for what God will do in our times together and it extinguishes my inclination toward pessimism. When I am getting ready to spend time with friends from my community group, it has me eagerly “peeking under my pillow.”