[Darris McNeely] Right now, as I speak, I should not be on this spot here in the studio doing this daily. You know where I should be? I should be in Turkey, on a road trip with my son visiting the seven churches of Revelation, but I'm not. You know why? That's right. The pandemic, the COVID-19. It's been put off a year. God willing, in one year from this week, I'll be in Turkey with that long-anticipated road trip with one of my sons, seeing something of biblical interest, but like so many other people during this period of time, events and plans have had to be postponed, changed, canceled, because of the massive upheavals from this pandemic.

I've written about it and I've talked about it that, you know, we'll get to go to those graduation celebrations and later wedding celebration with people that we love, and I still believe that. And as I've said, you know, I've been impacted personally by this as well, but it's reminded me of a scripture in Proverbs 13:12 that has a number of applications, but I think that all of us can learn something here. It says, "Hope deferred makes the heart sick."

I'm just heartsick that I'm not on this trip with my son at this time. And you know what, in my conversations with a lot of other people, they talk about the fact that they feel that, you know, since they've been cheated out of a lot of experiences and a lot of time wasted, especially older people who recognize that their days are fewer in number because of their age and all.

And so, whether we're young or old, hope deferred makes the heart sick. It truly does.

But here's what the rest of the proverb says. "But when the desire comes, it is a tree of life. When the desire comes, it is a tree of life."

God's in charge, God is working out His purpose and His plan in this larger event in the world scene and also in our own lives as we adapt, as we trust in Him, as we don't grow faint and weary and discouraged. We might be heartsick for a period of time as our desires and our anticipation of certain events have been put on hold, and I know a lot of people, a lot of our viewers are in that category, but wait and see what God has in mind. Wait patiently and we'll come to understand the meaning of this verse, that it is then a tree of life.

That's BT Daily. Join us next time.