Luke 7:18–35

Be Still: Lord Jesus, you know all my questions and doubts. As I read today, help me be honest with you about them, and teach me to trust your heart even when I just do not get what you are doing. Amen.

Read: Luke 7:18–35

Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else? (v19)

Encounter: From Sundays to Mondays – When God Does Not Do What You Expected 

John the Baptist, the bold preacher who once pointed to Jesus with total certainty, is now sitting in prison. Life has closed in on him, and his expectations have collapsed. So, he sends his followers with a painfully honest question: 'Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?' Even John reaches a moment where what he sees doesn’t match what he thought God would do.

Jesus doesn’t rebuke him. He simply points to what is happening: the blind see, the lame walk, lepers are healed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and good news is reaching the poor. God’s kingdom is breaking through, even if John’s situation isn’t changing. Then Jesus adds a gentle challenge: 'Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.' In other words: Don’t let what you don’t understand about me cause you to fall.

I felt that tension the first time I was made redundant. We were a young family with all the pressures that come with that. Hayley was working part time, and the church was relying on the giving we had committed to. Provision mattered. I had my own plan for how life was supposed to unfold, and redundancy wasn’t part of it. I remember those shaky prayers: 'Lord, are you really going to come through for us?' Looking back, God provided in ways I never expected, opening doors I wouldn’t have chosen or imagined.

This is where faith moves from Sundays to Mondays. We all have John-the-Baptist moments when expectations and reality collide. The answer isn’t pretending everything is fine but bringing our honest questions to Jesus and letting him show us where his kingdom is still breaking through.

Apply: Where are your hopes being squeezed right now? Name it honestly before Jesus. Ask the Spirit to show you small signs of his work around you.

Devote: Lord Jesus, thank you that you welcome my honest questions. Help me trust your heart while I wait.