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This is Proverb Pic, the daily devo newsletter that helps Christians become wiser in 2 minutes a day.

Proverb of the day

Proverb Pic

Meditation

This proverb is all about hope, expectation, and time. Something "deferred" is put off, delayed, or suspended. The longer a person goes without seeing their hope realized, the more likely they are to become discouraged. Seeing one's hopes coming to pass is uplifting. Many passages in Scripture are pleas to God, asking Him to bring about promises which seem to have been deferred. Time slowly suffocates the excitement of initial hope. The longer something takes the less hopeful we are that something will happen. Maybe you are not married yet. Maybe having a child is difficult. Maybe you are waiting on that promotion. Waiting can feel like it takes forever. That is why it makes the heart sick.

At the center of every person's heart, we find not only feelings but also hopes. These are things we believe in and rely on to make us happy. When something we really want takes longer to happen or is delayed, we feel sad and disappointed. It's important to understand that in our lives, we can't always have everything we hope for right away. The book of Hebrews in the Bible compares the life of Christians to the time when the Israelites were free from slavery but hadn't reached the Promised Land yet.

This proverb says that when the longing is fulfilled, we experience a glimpse of the past and future, just like in the Garden of Eden where there was the Tree of Life (Genesis 2:9). This is a picture of complete fulfillment and satisfaction. This proverb says that, unlike hope, the longer we wait, the more we appreciate the fulfillment of the longing. The more we wait the more we appreciate. This is a bittersweet truth. However, the New Testament teaches us that we will only find true happiness in the new heavens and new earth (Revelation 22:2).

Jesus’ suffering on the cross was a tree of death for him so that we could access the tree of life through our faith in him. When we feel disappointed, we can find comfort by remembering the future happiness promised to us because of Jesus' sacrifice.

Prayer

Lord, help us not to hold on to our hope in this life with a tight fist. Help us see that one day all our deepest longing will be fulfilled in you, and help us experience this now as we wait.

Application question

What hope is currently being deferred? How can we find fulfillment for that hope in Christ now?

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