Proverbs 29:18
“When life has no definitive dream, vision, purpose, or plan…it is at risk of being a wasted one!”
Having a dream and a hope in life, certainly is one of the most important elements of our lives. It is the one source that generates the actions of humanity.
People hope to have, hope to do, hope to go, hope to know, hope to give, hope to love, and hope to live. Young couples start off their married lives with plans and dreams of what they will accomplish…what differences in the world they will make…and what their legacy will become.
Some which have these dreams and hopes…begin to make the long and arduous preparations that are necessary to reach their goals in life. They exercise the patient and relentless courage that it takes to make difficult and selfless decisions…decisions that others are not willing to make…time and investment that others were not willing to give…and risks that others are simply not willing to take.
Proverbs 13:12
“A dream deferred makes the heart sick: …”
I believe that everyone who has ever had a dream for anything knows the sting and sometimes overwhelming blow of failure and disappointment. It is literally heart-sickening when you do everything within your power to make a dream come true…only to have it dashed and broken upon the hard rocks of the realities of life.
I have been there not once…but several times…and I am very familiar with the feelings that come with devastating disappointments. Nevertheless, I have come to understand that this is part of the journey. Any hope and dream that is worth dreaming will not come to pass without a tenacious ability to overcome failure, betrayal, weakness, collapse, and yes…even the utter death of your dream.
Proverbs 13:12
“… but when a hope and dream finally does come to pass… it is a tree of life.”
Then finally…when after a long, faithful, and patient fight to obtain these hopes…they seemingly and suddenly come to pass…there is an exhilarating and powerful peace, confidence, and strength that comes upon these faithful few! The honor of a job well done…is what the scripture here calls…a tree of life! A tree is notably different than other temporal plants…who rise quickly…only to dry up and die in the heat of the sun…and the trial of cold! A tree represents something residual…something that endures the changes of season…and continually year in and year out it faithfully continues to bear fruit of itself!
May our hopes and dreams become like these fruitful trees. May they flow in accordance to the things that are good and healthy for life, peace, and justice…and may we never give up on the Hope in our Heart! For in so doing…God will make sure…that our faithfulness in not in vain…that our dreams become a reality…and that they will endure and bear fruit for many generations to follow!