Hope Deferred

 

Holding On to the Tree of Life

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, 

but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” 

Proverbs 13:12 

Hope is a beautiful, but fragile thing. When it’s delayed, our hearts grow weary. We pray, we wait, we long—and when the answers don’t come as expected, discouragement creeps in. “Hope deferred makes the heart sick”—this verse names the ache we often feel when healing, provision, or restoration seems out of reach.

C.S. Lewis wisely observed, “We must lay before Him what is in us; not what ought to be in us.” God welcomes our honesty. David, in the Psalms, brought his despair before God—yet through his tears, trust was born. Our faith doesn’t erase the ache, but it anchors us in love that does not fail.

The second half of Proverbs 13:12 lifts our eyes to a greater hope: “a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” In Scripture, the tree of life is a recurring symbol of joy, abundance, and restored fellowship with God (Genesis 2:9; Revelation 22:2). When hope is finally fulfilled, it does more than satisfy—it revives, restores, and reconnects us with God.

“Hope does not put us to shame,” Paul writes in Romans 5:5, “because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit.” God uses even delayed hopes to deepen our trust and prepare us for joy.

Prayer:

Lord, when my heart is weary from waiting, draw me close. Help me to trust that You are never late. May the fulfillment of hope be a tree of life that leads me deeper into Your presence. Amen.