It has been said by some who study human behavior that one of the secrets to living a life of happiness is to have low or no expectations.  Because having low or no expectations guarantees one that if something goes well, then you are pleasantly surprised, and if something doesn't go well then your disappointments are minimal. This mindset and mentality is used by many as a coping mechanism to protect themselves from disappointing experiences.  Therefore, if I keep my hopes/expectations low then my heart won't be saddened or hurt if I don't experience positive outcomes in my relationships, career, family, educational pursuits, etc..

 

However, as one wise preacher said, "You generally get what you expect."  If you expect nothing you generally get nothing. Yet faith is designed to raise our level of expectations and enable us to live a life of hope, rather than hopelessness. 

 

In Luke's account of Christ's resurrection, we find that many who followed Him had lost hope and couldn't imagine expecting something better than what they witnessed at His crucifixion (death). Sometimes we are not able to see that God can bring something better to us out of what we may consider to be a bad situation. The resurrection helps us see how we can expect something better! When we are actively living a vital and vibrant relationship with God we can expect something better!