Hope Deferred

The Holy Spirit spoke and said the words, "Hope Deferred" and I wasn't sure what they meant, so I tried to find scripture for it, which was Proverbs 13:12. I also prayed that the Holy Spirit would bring wisdom and revelation on the meaning of those words.

I still wasn't quite sure what He was telling me so I searched for deeper studies on the topic. I found this post from Jehova.net and wanted to share the encouraging words with you.

Hope deferred (put off or prolonged) is a weariness (a vexation to the mind, an affliction to the soul, a sickness of heart); but when what is desired (that which is prayed for) comes (the answer to prayer that comes - a longing fulfilled), it is a tree of life (a realized source of power, our Savior). Proverbs 13:12.

Deferred hopes are unavoidable, in our current crisis and in life. We all must live with dreams that never quite materialize. We all have plans that never get off the ground. If we build our faith in God on the notion that if we serve Him the right way and know the right things to say, we will always get exactly what we want when we want it, our "faith" will not survive. Faith is not a sprint; it is a marathon. It is "he that endures to the end" that will be saved. Endurance is, among other things, about surviving deferred hopes.

"My soul, wait in silence for God only,

For my hope is from Him.

He only is my rock and my salvation,

My stronghold; I shall not be shaken."

Psalm 62:5,6

This character produces hope for your future, because you made it this far, & you will continue for I AM with you to teach you. Your hope in Me will never disappoint you.

We have discovered our life's meaning -- we know that our lives have a purpose and lasting worth -- all because we have been learning for the last many years to deal with  our deferred hopes. So yes, deferred hopes do make our hearts sick. But, over time, how we deal with those deferred hopes seem to have the power to make our souls well.

"The word of the Lord tested Joseph until the day appointed for his vision (Joseph's dreams and hopes) to come to pass," the Psalm says.

I wonder if Joseph experienced any nights of despair in that prison? Surely he must have! Somehow though, he learned how to make his despair temporary and his hopes permanent. That's how he finally came to fill the place that God had been preparing for him to fill all along.

You can do the same. Here are four practical steps you can take every day to build a sure foundation of hope that will carry you through the storms of life:

1. Submit yourself to God. God is the source of our hope. Come to Him in humility and He will restore you according to His plan to bless and prosper you (1 Peter 5:6-7).

2. Strengthen your faith. Allow God's previously fulfilled promises to renew your hope. God has given us written record of countless ways He has provided hope for believers in centuries past. Look to these marvelous accounts for renewal (1 Chronicles 16:7-17) .

3. Trust God's timing. Sometimes God answers our prayers and fulfills our hopes quickly. At other times, for His own divine reasons, He allows us to wait. Remember, it was through faith and patience that Abraham's hope was fulfilled.

4. Thank God today. Though it's arduous to rejoice as we wait for hopes to be fulfilled, rejoicing enables God to perfect us in ways we are unable to see at the time. And this kind of hope, purified in the crucible of waiting, and sometimes suffering, "does not disappoint" (Romans 5:1-5).

As You Pray

Have you lost hope? You can regain lost hope, with Jesus' help. Right now, turn to the Author of all hope and rest in Him. Make the right sacrifice and trust in Him.... Contend with Him in prayer as Jacob did... God's covenant is for those that have faith in Him as did Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob... and the Scripture says for a thousand generations thereafter..... Selah (think about it) Guard your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the issues of life... Proverbs 4:23

Pray this prayer: "Father, forgive me for not seeing You as You truly are. Please use Your Word to encourage me. Help me to hide it in my heart. Let Your Holy Spirit direct me moment-by-moment as I wait in the hope You have given me through our Lord Jesus Christ. In Jesus' name. Amen."

God's Word on Hope

"This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast" (Hebrews 6:29a).

Scriptures for Study

Hebrews 6:10-19, Romans 5:1-11 -- God's precious promise of hope.

Small Glimpses of Heaven

God will appear to us in the midst of natural things (Exodus 3:2) And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.

Today when I Googled my blog name, I noticed another blog which had a name similar to mine. It was called "The Glimpses of Heaven - Living on Earth." Curious, I clicked on it and was elated to see someone posted one of their glimpses of heaven. As I read his story, I was reminded of one of the Glimpses of Heaven through nature which the Lord shared with me.

I was picking my son up at school and had to go around the block to see if I could find a parking place. It was a bitter cold day, it had rained the day before and made for a gloomy day. As I looked at the trees and saw all the leaves on the ground, the thought came to me, time sure is going fast. I remember thinking, I didn't even get to enjoy seeing the autumn leaves fall from the trees, this year. I was so busy with work and then trying to keep up with the two bible study classes I had started. Not one tree had its leaves on it. I was actually disappointed that the season had zipped by, I have always enjoyed the beautiful fall colors and seeing the wind whip a pile of leaves here and there, making them look like they are in a running marathon.

As I turned the corner, my eye caught a small tree which had begun to shake and down came some autumn leaves. They seemed to fall in slow motion and I was amazed. I knew the Lord had just shook that tree, there was not a breeze to be seen or felt. I was tickled and pleased at the thought that GOD knew my thoughts and acted on them. His act made a reaction from me of thankfulness for the things He will do just to have an encounter with us.

Those are the kind of Glimpses that make you know, that you know, that you know there is a GOD. These glimpses are the mile markers that make us not forget the GOD we serve.I would like to share Roger C. Lynn's blog with you, I know you will be blessed. You might even be reminded of some time when GOD out of the blue, showed you a mile marker. -Debi Webster-

God is all around us in every moment of every day. Many of us have come to believe this. And most of the time our awareness of this reality is fairly low. We go about our living, doing the things we do. Maybe we offer up the occasional prayer of thanks, or make a request for some guidance. Mostly we just put one foot in front of the other, dealing with each moment as it comes along. And all of that is really OK. But once in a while there are experiences which transform the very shape of our living. There are those moments when we become profoundly aware of the sacred quality of life - when the presence of God takes center stage, not to be ignored.

Who can say exactly why it happens when it does. Who can say why one person has such an experience and not another. Certainly learning to pay attention increases the chance that we will notice. And yet there is strong evidence that such experiences remain unexpected and unpredictable. Moses goes up on the mountain and encounters the mysterious presence of the divine. Jesus takes three of his followers up onto the mountain to prayer, and they have a profoundly moving experience of the sacred.

The scriptures are filled with stories of such experiences. And yet it is also clear that such experiences are not ordinary or commonplace. Such "mountaintop" encounters with God play an important role in living faithfully, but they do not define or contain such living. The temptation is certainly there - to stay in that moment forever. Peter, in the face of such an encounter, wants to erect some tents - to set up camp and just stay in that moment.

But that's not how it works. Soon enough they were headed back down the mountain again - back into the thick of their living. The difference is that now they had something to sustain them - a glimpse of heaven to remember when they needed strength for their living here on earth. We need such reminders - that we are not alone and there is more to this world than we usually see. We need such reminders to keep us going. They don't happen all the time. Some people go their whole life watching for such an experience. Some spend the rest of their days cherishing the one glimpse they were fortunate enough to catch. But either way, I think maybe the result is the same - our awareness is raised and our living is transformed in the process. We are changed....

...Sometimes we are Moses waiting for days in the fog - waiting for we know not even what. Sometimes we are Peter wanting desperately to capture the moment and preserve it forever ... Most of the time we are simply ourselves, living our lives as best we can. In each of our moments, in all of our days, may we remember that glimpsed or unglimpsed, God is present, and the God who is present is calling us to live in this world so fully that others might begin to catch a glimpse of God in our living.