In light of my previous post, I had a well-meaning friend send me a quote that Steve Jobs made at the 2005 Stanford University Graduation.

It’s a great quote and I’m sure that my friend wanted me to be encouraged by it as I’m facing the delima of grad school. But I wondered how Job’s words would stand up to what God’s Word?

Here’s the conversation that I imagine would take place:

Jobs: “Your time is limited, do don’t waste it living someone else’s life.”

God: “Rest in the Lord; wait patiently for Him to act.” Psalms 37:7

Jobs: “Don’t be trapped by dogma–which is living with the results of other people’s thinking.”

God: “Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to get along happily whether I have much or little. I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of contentment in every situation, whether it be a full stomach or hunger, plenty, or want; for I can do everything God asks me to with the help of Christ Who gives me the strength and power.” Philippians 4:11-13

Jobs: “Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice.”

God: “Trust the Lord completely; don’t ever trust yourself. In everything you do, put God first, and He will direct you and crown your efforts with success.” Proverbs 3:5-6

Jobs: “And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.”

God: “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” Jeremiah 17:9

Jobs: “They somehow already know what you truly want to become.”

God: “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11

I happened to log onto my Alltel account to make a payment this past morning and this is what I saw:

I can’t tell you how exciting it is to know that something is actually happening! I’ve wanted an iPhone for years but because I live in the technological wastelands of South Dakota, I’ve never had the opportunity to have coverage until now!

As I savored the thought of beautiful apps, poor customer service, and phone that may or may not stay connected depending on how I held it, I immediately thought of this verse:

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

I don’t want to insinuate that the iPhone would complete my life, but I think that this concept of hope deferred is something that is very much a factor in our society.

Hope deferred. It’s a horrible concept that something that you long for so badly would be put off until some other time. Hope deferred ravages your mind causing doubt and confusion. It permeates your sense of order and creates mass chaos that blind you. Hope deferred not only makes the heart sick, but it has the desire to twist your mind into becoming bitter and jealous.

It’s because of hope deferred that people give up on their dreams and settle for a life that is far from what God has purposed and planned for them. Hope deferred feeds the insecurity and speaks into our lives saying, “It’s never going to happen, so quit trying and give up.” Hope deferred kills us.

The thing about this horrible truth of hope deferred is that the proverb immediately follows it up with the idea that a desire fulfilled is a tree of life. That’s the key to making it through hope deferred.

When we understand that when our desire is fulfilled it will give us live more abundantly than we could ever imagine. That desire will put roots to our dream that will pull us down and lock us in the soil in such a way that hope deferred loses it’s destructive pattern in our life.

Hope deferred may make our heart sick, but when God is ready to use us and to fulfill our desire in His perfect timing, that’s when hope deferred changes into a life that’s well worth the wait.

So my question for you is this – Do you wait for the life that God has purposed and planned for you or are do you succumb to hope deferred and walk away from everything?