Don’t Expect People To Give You What They do not Have!

Written by Netisha Alie-Grant 

(Author of Inspirational Book Walking a Two-Way Street)

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Can a pepper tree bear tomatoes? 

Matthew 7:16 & 18 

“16.You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? 

18. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.”

You may be stressed by the actions of those around or lack there of unnecessarily and to your own detriment because you’re expecting them to give you something that they simply do not have. 

You may have people in your life whom you have created your own ideology and expectations of based on their age or their social status. However these people keep disappointing you because they are not delivering in the areas you expect them to. 

I have said this before; There is always a “why” to the things people do or do not do. Here is one of the reasons why you’ll probably be disappointed; they simply do not have the quality you think they should possess or don’t know how to do the things you think they should.

Can someone give you what they do not have? In the book of Acts chapter 3 Peter said to the beggar at the gate of the temple; “silver and gold have I none, but such as I have I give thee- in the name of Jesus get up and walk!” And so the lame beggar  who wasn’t able to walk all his life, gets up and walks.  Peter was blatantly honest with what he actually possesses rather than what he did not. 

If you have no money can you give someone a loan? You may be expecting people in relationships, in your church or even on your job to give you certain qualities and to act a certain way but they simply cannot because they may not know how, or have never been cultured that way. 

So the best thing to do is identify whether the person knows what you require or expect and if they don’t, proceed to teach them and if they are not “teachable” then change your expectations towards them. This will help reduce your disappointment and unnecessary heart break. Thus bringing you to a place of better understanding the person. 

Then you can decide if it’s best to savor your relationship with the individual or stay connected while not being disappointed because you know what to expect and what not to expect. 

C’est bon? Sounds good!