Hope Deferred

by Patrice Tsague

Hope deferred makes the heart sick but when desires comes it is a tree of life. Proverbs 13:12

The recent economic crisis of the last two years swept away the hopes of many individuals and kingdom business stewards. Some had plans to make a great impact in the kingdom; some believed God to retire from one career so they could be repurposed into another area of ministry; some planned to get out of debt, give more to the work of the kingdom, and expand their businesses or start new businesses. But the crisis depleted their savings, reduced their income and brought many to the point of bankruptcy. The Bible states that, “Hope deferred makes the heart sick…” The delay of hopes and dreams has caused many to lose their Godfidence and some have even quit.

Hope is an anticipation of a desired future. Hope keeps you going when nothing around you seems to work. Hope is the heartbeat of future dreams and goals. When you have no hope, no matter how realistic your goals or how rewarding the promise may be, you will not have the strength to continue to persevere. You will quit!

What causes our hopes to be deferred? Our hope is deferred when we put our hope in the wrong thing. Whenever our hope is bound by anything tangible, it is at risk of being deferred. We live in a sinful world and no matter how comprehensive our plans, how righteous our walk, or how worthy our goals, they may not always come together the way we envision them. Our hope must always be based on the unchanging nature and character of Jesus Christ.

In Luke chapter 24, Jesus had just been crucified and we find two of His disciples traveling to a village called Emmaus. As they travel, they begin to talk with sadness about what had just occurred in Jerusalem. As they talked, Jesus Himself draws near to them and asks them why they are so sad. They proceed to recap how their leader was condemned to death and crucified when their hope was that He would redeem Israel, but now that hope had been deferred. Jesus rebuked them for their faithlessness, reminded them of the Scriptures, and revealed Himself to them. They were hopeless because they had taken their eyes off Jesus, forgotten the scriptures and were solely focused on their short term loss and immediate desires. Whenever we take our eyes off Jesus and focus on our circumstances, our hope gets deferred.

If we do not properly manage our deferred hopes, we may allow our faith to be shipwrecked or we may begin to lean on our own understanding and “help God out” by creating our own path. That was the case with Abraham and Sarah as they were waiting for the child of promise. They became impatient and began to feel as though they were getting too old. So they made arrangements with their maid for her to carry a child for them. The result was Ishmael. That act has caused problems until this day.

How do you prevent your faith from shipwrecking or birthing an Ishmael when you faith is deferred?

Remember that deferred does not mean denied.


Make sure your hope is based on God’s will for you.


Distinguish between God’s will versus your personal dreams and desires.


Make sure your hope is anchored on your faith in Jesus Christ – Jesus must be your hope.


Know that God will work all things together for your good.


Keep in mind that your timing is not God’s timing.

Rejoice, for such is the will of God concerning you.

Like you, my wife and I have been on a long journey to realize a vision that we believe to be from God, but we did not realize would take this long. We constantly have had to renew our faith and keep our eyes on Jesus so we can persevere. What keeps us encouraged is the joy of seeing the many lives that have been transformed and the kingdom businesses that are creating jobs and resourcing the kingdom due to our obedience. There is also the joy of knowing that we are being used by the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords. The struggles help to keep us on our knees, maintain a level of humility, and keep our eyes on Him.

Has your hope been deferred? Whatever circumstances you find yourself in, neither yield to the temptation of creating your own path, nor give up. Rather, endure the suffering that comes with the sense of loss and personal disappointment with joy, knowing that He who began a good work in you shall complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. He will work all things together for your good because you love Him and are called according to His purpose.

Copyright © 2010 Patrice Tsague ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.