The most common expectation would-be followers of God possess, I think, is that if we are faithful to God we will be protected, rescued, defended, upheld, showered with blessings. The morally and Scripturally bankrupt “prosperity Gospel” preached by Joel Osteen and others is all about this idea—the idea that wealth, possessions are a sign of God’s favor, God’s reward for being a fabulous person. But from a Biblical perspective this is absolutely bonkers—I can’t recall reading about a single person who received public acclaim, wealth, power or prestige from living into his or her call. Prodding or dragging the world towards God’s dream is hard work and it does not come with a fancy sign up bonus. Fighting for justice for all people, fighting the forces of evil and hate, takes courage, it takes a realistic assessment of what you are signing up for. It takes the willingness to let go of the idea of reward—that we are owed anything for living into God’s dream.