July 13, 2026 -- Proverbs 13:12 -- What's happening to the hope in your heart?

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People loved by the Father, in the Spirit's power: Sh'ma ~ hear and obey Jesus!

Hope deferred makes the heart sick,
but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.
Proverbs 13:12 ESV
 
When I meet with prisoners, one of the most prominent features of their life is their lack of hope. Prison squeezes hope out of them. When there is a parole hearing, some of the guys feel hope rise in them for the first time in a long time. Maybe they’ll get out. Maybe things will be different. Maybe. When the meeting with the Parole Board takes place, if it is a decision against granting the inmate parole that is handed down, the man is crushed. His hope is deferred, dragged away and placed far out of his reach. The depressing discouragement that follows is hard to see. I am sure all of us can relate. Something longed for was snatched away.
 
Today’s passage reminds us that believers have their hope firmly anchored in Jesus. Their hope is not for retirement or riches, family times or accolades. Look at the second line of today’s proverb. The tree of life might ring bells reminding you of Genesis. In the Garden of Eden God planted the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil (Adam and Eve sinned and ate of it). God the Father threw Adam and Eve out of the Garden before they could eat of the Tree of Life. A mighty angel with a flaming sword guarded the entrance to Eden so no one could enter. After the Flood, the Garden of Eden was swept away. However, the Tree of Life is referred to in other places in the Bible.
In Proverbs “she [wisdom] is a tree of life to all who lay hold of her” (3:18). Then we read “The fruit of righteousness is a tree of life” (Proverbs 11:30). Jesus was crucified on the tree. It was a tree that was a curse. He became a curse for us, so that in Him we might have life. Jesus is our wisdom. He is our righteousness. He is that tree of life that restores hope. In Revelation, all those who are in Christ, will be able to eat from the tree of life (Revelation 2:7). In Revelation 22 the leaves of the tree of life are for the healing of the nations.
Believers do not have a hope that is dragged away; no, our is confident hope that:

  • their sins are forgiven in Jesus

  • their future in the presence of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit is guaranteed because of Jesus’ reconciling work

  • they are already now beloved sons and daughters of God the Most High

  • this world and its troubles and even severe persecutions can never separate them from the love of God that is theirs in Christ

  • motivates them to live for Jesus now, bearing witness to Him in Whom all their godly desires are met and all their expectations are exceeded.

 
Father in Heaven, God of all Good, by the power of Your Spirit living in me, unhook my desires from all that is lowly, earthly, worldly, and less-than wholly You-focused. As I contemplate the confident hope of all the blessings already mine in Christ, and all those to be mine in Christ at the Day of Judgment, let the extravagant wonder of belonging to You in Christ fill my thoughts, guard me against sin, and direct my steps. Amen.
 
https://youtu.be/igV63aKSqb8?si=dG7hPZWZVsDC72P- Spirit of God
 

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