When Familiarity Kills Expectation

“He could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them.” - Mark 6:5

It is possible to be around Jesus and still miss what He wants to do. Familiarity has a way of dulling expectation. When something becomes routine, you stop approaching it with wonder. You assume you already know how it works and what to expect. Faith quietly shifts from anticipation to assumption, and that shift changes everything.

This happens more easily than most people realize. You hear Scripture often. You pray familiar prayers. You attend gatherings regularly. Over time, the extraordinary can begin to feel ordinary. Jesus becomes someone you know about rather than someone you actively expect to move. When expectation fades, faith shrinks. Not because God has changed, but because hearts have grown casual.

Familiarity convinces you that you have already seen all God is willing to do. You stop asking boldly. You stop listening closely. You stop coming with hunger. Instead of wonder, there is routine. Instead of expectancy, there is comfort. Scripture shows that this posture limits what God desires to do, not because His power is reduced, but because faith has grown passive.

Expectation creates room for God to work. It sharpens attention and awakens faith. When you approach Jesus believing He still moves, still speaks, and still transforms, your heart stays open. You listen differently. You pray differently. You worship with awareness instead of habit. God meets hunger with provision. He responds to faith that expects more than the familiar.

If your faith has begun to feel dull or predictable, do not assume God is distant. Ask whether familiarity has replaced expectation. Return to Scripture with fresh hunger. Pray with belief that God still responds. Approach each day trusting that He is active and present. Jesus has not become common. Only our expectations sometimes do. When familiarity loosens its grip, faith awakens again. Expectation grows. And God is welcomed to move in ways that routine never allows.