Longing

Hope (the general feeling that some desire will be fulfilled)

deferred (hold back to a later time) makes the heart sick... 

Waiting.  It's just a part of life.  We wait our turn in lines.  We wait for school buses. We wait for the waiter to bring our food.  We wait 9 months to see our unborn child.  We wait for the pie to be ready to come out of the oven.  We learn to wait.  We learn to be patient.

But, when the fulfillment of the longings of our heart are delayed, it can be harder to be patient.  This proverb tells us it can make us feel down-right sick.   I guess that might be where we get the terms 'home sick' and 'love sick'.  It hurts to wait for something we really long for.  And, it hurts even more when it feels like the longing will never be fulfilled.  We question if our waiting is in vain. 

I remember reading this a long time ago and never forgot it.  Isaiah says... "those who hope in Me will not be disappointed." 

What catches my attention here is:  What exactly are we focusing our hope on?  Are we just wishing on a star?  Or, is there a greater confidence behind our hope?

If we hope in the One who is able to fulfill every longing, though we may still need to wait, we can be sure that there is no disappointment when we leave the waiting room.

The proverb ends like this...

...but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.