Hope vs Hope

"Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life."

Proverbs 13:12

This verse is one of those which I normally read with little but a passing thought, and I was tempted to do the same thing again this morning.  But as my goal in the Proverbs is to learn and grow from what I am reading, I decided that this is the one today to which I will give the most consideration. 

What is hope?  My friend Noah (Webster) says this about hope:  " A desire of some good, accompanied with at least a slight expectation of obtaining it, or a belief that it is obtainable. Hope differs from wish and desire in this, that it implies some expectation of obtaining the good desired, or the possibility of possessing it. Hope therefore always gives pleasure or joy; whereas wish and desire may produce or be accompanied with pain and anxiety."

Have you ever planned for a much needed trip?  Your hopes are high, your expectation is firm that this is just the catharsis you needed for that overworked brain.  You are just going to relax and enjoy yourself for a few unencumbered days.  Can't wait!  Isn't it fun to work and hope towards the coming event? 

"Hope deferred makes the heart sick...."

Deferred.  Noah said that to defer means "to delay; to put off; to postpone to a future time; as, to defer the execution of a design."

 For some reason, possibly an illness or a sudden bill that must be paid, you are unable to make this trip that you have so needed and dreamed about.  Oh, the letdown!  Your heart is just sick.  You don't know when you will be able to take this vacation now. 

This is a pretty simple to understand proverb, isn't it?

"but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life."

You find out that you will be able to make the trip,only a month later.  A lilt springs back into your steps.  You feel alive again.  It is happening after all.  Life is good!

Can there be no more application than this?  

I think there can.

At our church we sing this wonderful song:

 

My Hope is in the Lord

---

My hope is in the Lord
Who gave Himself for me
And paid the price
Of all my sin at Calvary.

CHORUS:
For me He died;
For me He lives,
And everlasting life
And light He freely gives.

VERSE 2:
No merit of my own
His anger to suppress
My only hope is found
In Jesus' righteousness

(REPEAT CHORUS)

VERSE 3:
And now for me He stands
Before the Father's throne
He shows His wounded hands
And names me as His own

(REPEAT CHORUS)

VERSE 4:
His grace has planned it all
'Tis mine but to believe
And recognize His work of love
And Christ receive

 Listen to this song using Rhapsody (Free for 14 Days)

There is no greater hope than the assurance that the One who gave Himself for us will someday fulfill our desire for heaven, which is deferred for now and sometimes makes us sick with longing, 

This hope is defined as " Confidence in a future event; the highest degree of well founded expectation of good;"  

Although our hope is deferred for a time, we do not have to "hope" with no assurance.  Rather, as our confidence is in the One who redeemed us from all sin, we may also be confident that our desire will be fulfilled and we will someday be able to partake of the tree of life for eternity.  

Where is your hope?  Is it in things that are eternal, that will ultimately be fulfilled?  Can you hope with the confident expectation that you will not be disappointed?  

With hope and assurance,

Gloria