"That wasn't what I was expecting."
As a pastor, I am privileged to sit with people who are struggling in their relationship with God each month. While I seek to listen, hold space for them to share their burden, and look for ways to encourage them, I often find a pattern at work.
Many of our frustrations with both people and God center around expectations. Unmet, unstated, unrealistic, and unagreed-upon expectations create feelings of anger, betrayal, cynicism, and disappointment. Writer Anne Lamott famously wrote, "Expectations are resentments under construction."
You might be able to think about a relationship with a friend, family member, or coworker who went through a difficult season because of unmatched expectations. But don't overlook how this principle can work as we relate to God.
Some of those pastoral conversations include the expectations people developed as children, teens, or new followers of Jesus. They feel like God isn't delivering on His promises or keeping His part of the bargain. When we can step back and compare those expectations with Scripture, we often discover that someone shared an unbiblical ideal with us or we made an assumption. These moments create a need to grieve these expectations and embrace the experience God is working amidst.
This honesty about life and faith shapes the kind of art Bodie wants to make, including his new song, "Whisper and The Wind". After competing on Season 22 of The Voice and finishing as the runner-up, bodie initially resisted moving into Christian music, even rejecting a recording contract from a Christian recording label.
RELATED CONTENT: New Artist Bodie Finds God in the Quiet Moments of Life on ‘Whisper and the Wind’
In an interview with Parade Magazine, bodie shares his desire was to make some music that directly acknowledges his faith in Christ, while also writing music that is meaningful for secular people. He wanted to write honestly about how people experience God's presence.
"I just wanted to write a song that acknowledged that oftentimes people have experienced God moving in mighty ways, big, miraculous, ground-shaking, mind-blowing, miraculous ways, but more often than not, He doesn't move that way. He moves in the stillness, the quietness of His spirit."
"Whisper and The Wind" references the experience of the prophet Elijah. After seeing fire fall from heaven on Mt. Carmel in 1 Kings 18, Elijah experienced an intense season of exhaustion, burnout, despair, and suicidal ideation. Once he'd rested and eaten food provided by God, Elijah went on a 40-day journey to Mt. Sinai. God spoke to him, but not in big, earth-shaking means. "And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And a voice said, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"
Expecting God to show up only (or even primarily) in moments when fire falls from heaven is a recipe for disappointment. Even Elijah heard God speaking quietly. Since our expectations shape our experience, we would be wise to look for God more in the quiet and mundane moments than in the big and flashy ones.
Bodie wrote "whisper and the wind" from this vantage point. He told Parade Magazine about the purpose behind this song.
"People can fall victim to expecting God to look and move a certain way in every situation and circumstance. And so, I just wanted to acknowledge the fact that God can move and act in many different ways, small and big, and just as much as we have faith for the big things, that He operates just as much, if not more, in the stillness and the quiet, of a whisper of His voice."
As I listened to the chorus of "whisper and the wind," I thought of the promise God gave His people in Jeremiah 29. After being told that they needed to build homes and plant roots in Babylonian exile, we read the famous words of verse 11 about God knowing the plans He has for us. But just a couple of verses later, God spoke through Jeremiah, saying, "If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me."
In the chorus, bodie declares a similar promise.
"So help me learn to listen when You're speaking
'Cause love is not a secret that You're keeping
And I, I've felt You when walls are caving in
Yeah, You're with me in the whisper and the wind."
"whisper and the wind" combines bodie's joyful personality with relentlessly honest lyrics. If you've been frustrated with God lately and struggling with unmet expectations, this song could offer you the reset you need. Bodie invites us to hope amid life's challenges that feel so overwhelming. God is with us in the whisper and the wind!
Scott Savage is a pastor, author, and speaker with the best last name in the world. Scott’s writing helps people transform difficult circumstances into places where they can thrive. He leads Cornerstone Church in Prescott, Arizona, and loves watching movies with his wife and three kids. You can begin Scott’s life-changing project, The 21 Day Gratitude Challenge, today.
