Why Hope, Longing, Life?

A HOPE deferred makes the heart sick, but a LONGING fulfilled is the tree of LIFE. Prvb 13:12

I now have my own scripture canvas! It was a special gift from my sister for my birthday. It is happily sitting on my mantle and I LOVE it.

I get a lot of questions about Hope, Longing, Life. Where did it come from and why is it the blog title? So here goes my best explanation...let's start with some definitions.

hope  

/hōp/

Noun A feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.

Verb Want something to happen or be the case

Synonyms noun.   expectation - expectancy - expectance - trust - promise verb.   trust - expect - anticipate

long·ing  

/ˈlôNGiNG/

Noun A yearning desire.

Adjective Having or showing such desire

Synonyms noun.   yearning - desire - craving - hankering - hunger - thirst adjective.   wishful - wistful - hungry - desirous - yearning - eager

tree of life  

Noun (in the Bible) A tree in the Garden of Eden whose fruit imparts eternal life (Gen. 3:22–24). An imaginary branching, treelike structure representing the evolutionary divergence of all living creatures.

This verse was something my sweet sister clung too when she was struggling with fertility. She knew one day that God would give her the desires of her heart in one way or another. After years of trying and treatment, they started to pursue the idea of adoption. Meanwhile, Richard and I were pursuing our careers and had not yet made a plan for children. Someday...just not yet.
My sister was in town the weekend I found out I was pregnant. That was a major life moment for me! She whole heartedly embraced me and loved on me that day. Even when I had mixed emotions about all that was about to happen. It was the most selfless love I had ever experienced!
Little did we know that 5 days later she would be calling me to tell me that she too was pregnant! What a miracle and a blessing that we would walk through this together! 
Most of you know the rest of that story. Our precious little girls were born 5 days apart, 14 weeks later, my Lilly passed away. It was my turn to respond with the grace and love my sister had shown me. It is funny how God works sometimes! Her baby, Bennett, filled such a void in my life and my sister graciously shared her with me!

So, why Hope, Longing, Life? Because that is what life is all about! I have known the agony of a "hope deferred", but I have also lived the "tree of life." I think we will all walk through longing and life periods on this earth, but isn't it great that we know it is just temporary? Our true hope is in Christ and if we focus on that, that trials of this life are much more bearable!