Hope deferred....

"Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but desire fulfilled is a tree of life." Proverbs 13:12

This past week has been the week of trials, it may seem. The Enemy is trying to weaken my faith, as well as the faith of my family and friends. First, he has been systematically attacking several marriages within our church body, mine and my husband's included. Then, he's been trying to whisper lies in my ear when unthinkable hardships come to me and those I hold dear: my grandmother becoming bedridden and possibly facing death less than two months after I lost my grandfather, a wonderful friend and sister in Christ suffering from pain and illness even after hours of prayer and intercession for miraculous healing, and a faithful, deserving couple who after planning for months to adopt a baby were forced to say good-bye when he was only a few hours old when the adoption process fell through. What are the whispers I hear? "How can a loving God allow these things to happen to His children?"

It's an age-old question, often used as fodder by atheists to cause dissention and debate. The fact is, we live in a fallen world. We all will fall victim to disappointment, disease, and death at some point in our lives. And sometimes we may not know this side of Heaven why God allows these things to happen. But one thing I hold to during these hard times: He will work EVERYTHING together for the good of those who love Him (Romans 8:28). Even the most horrible events in our lives can serve a higher purpose later on, whether it be a lesson learned, an opportunity to cling to His side, a chance to minister to others, or maybe just allowing something better to happen later on when the time is right.

Our hopes are often deferred, as referenced in the Scripture above. Last year my husband and I suffered the loss of a pregnancy. All we wanted was a baby, but that hope was deferred. In our case, God allowed us to conceive very soon after, and now we can't imagine life without our precious son. We still miss the baby we lost, but God turned that hardship into good, in the form of our child, as well as being able to minster to others who have also experienced miscarriages.

The verse above mentions a "tree of life" that comes with desire being fulfilled. The biblical tree of life is currently in Heaven. I can't think of a better desire being fulfilled (or a bigger hope currently being deferred) than one day meeting my Savior and sitting under the branches of His tree of life. Lord, please help me keep this eternal perspective even when times are hard here on earth.