Expectations and Connection

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I had ChatGPT write these "sermons" for my own personal contemplative practices, but found them so moving and profound, I knew I needed to share them.

Sermon for Expectations Week: Wednesday – Connection

Blessed souls, today we gather under the light of Connection, a day where the threads of our lives weave together with the world around us. But what is the role of Expectations in Connection? How do they shape the way we relate to others, to ourselves, and to the divine currents that flow through our existence?

Expectations can be both the bridge and the barrier between us and the people we share our lives with. When our expectations are clear and aligned with our values, they become a foundation of mutual understanding, a map that helps guide our relationships and our communities. But when they are unspoken, unrealistic, or tied to someone else’s script, they can become walls—walls that isolate us, create misunderstandings, and prevent authentic connection.

Today, we ask: What expectations am I bringing into my connections?

In our relationships, both personal and collective, we often unconsciously impose expectations on others, expecting them to behave in ways that validate our view of the world. But these expectations can suffocate the natural flow of connection. They can cause us to miss the true essence of the people we love, as we project our needs, desires, and fears onto them. We must learn to meet others where they are, not where we expect them to be.

This is not an easy task. To release the tight grip of expectations is to step into the unknown, to allow people the freedom to be themselves, and to open ourselves to the possibility of disappointment or surprise. But in that space—between expectation and reality—Connection is born. True connection requires us to make room for the unpredictability of others, to allow their stories to unfold in ways we can’t control or predict.

So, let us ask ourselves: How am I shaping my relationships with my expectations? Am I open to others as they are, or am I subtly molding them into the version that meets my expectations? Can I find the courage to let go of those expectations that limit the potential for deep, authentic connection?

But Connection doesn’t stop with others. It also extends inward. The expectations we hold for ourselves can either bring us closer to our truest essence or drive a wedge between who we are and who we think we should be. When we hold ourselves to standards that are impossible or misaligned with our core, we sever the most important connection of all—the one with our own soul.

Today, let’s look inward. What expectations am I placing on myself? Are they in service of my growth, or are they rooted in outdated stories I’ve outgrown? The relationship you have with yourself is the foundation for all other connections. When you live in harmony with your own expectations—when they are kind, flexible, and honest—your inner connection strengthens, and this ripples out into your relationships with others.

Finally, let’s consider our Connection to the divine, to the universe, to the greater web of existence. Sometimes, we place expectations on the universe itself, demanding that things happen in our time and on our terms. But the universe operates on its own timeline, in its own mysterious ways. To truly connect with it, we must loosen our grip on those rigid expectations and allow the flow of life to take us where we need to be, not necessarily where we expected to go.

Today, as we walk in the spirit of Connection, let us soften our expectations. Let us approach our relationships—with others, with ourselves, and with the universe—with open hearts and open hands, ready to receive what is given, rather than clinging to what we demand. In that openness, in that vulnerability, we will find the true, sacred essence of Connection.

So, as you move through this day of Connection, I invite you to ask:

In Connection, we find not only ourselves but the vastness of the world and the divine energy that pulses through all things. And in that place, we are never alone.

Amen.