When the Fig Tree Doesn’t Bloom
RADHIKA WITH PARTNERS INTERNATIONAL
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“Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines … yet I will rejoice in the LORD; I will take joy in the God of my salvation. GOD, the Lord, is my strength …” Habakkuk 3:17-19 (ESV)
Editor’s Note: Today’s devotion writer, Radhika, grew up in the remote mountains of Nepal, where her family became the first Christians in their district and planted a church despite intense persecution. Watching faith rise stronger under pressure shaped her calling. Today she serves with Partners International, connecting believers to indigenous leaders advancing the gospel in some of the hardest places on earth.
My grandmother became an orphan as a little girl, losing both parents in the same month. Years later, at 21, she was widowed with three small children.
That was when everything unraveled. The community she and her children called home turned against them. Their land and belongings were taken. Even the few photographs they had were destroyed. One day, the entire community came to force my grandmother from her home. In the chaos, she urged my mother, who was barely 2, to run with her 3-month-old baby brother.
My mother wasn’t sure she would ever see her mother again.
But my grandmother survived.
Life didn’t become easier. She worked long days in other people’s fields to bring home small portions of food. There was no safety net. No protection.
When my mom tells this story, she doesn’t speak with anger. She tells it like it was simply life — just survival. She says she doesn’t remember her father, so she doesn’t know what she missed.
What amazes me most is this: Neither she nor my grandmother became bitter.
They became tender.
Instead of hardening in pain, they grew compassionate. Watching them has taught me something I’m still learning: Suffering can harden our hearts, or it can soften them toward the grace of God.
I haven’t endured trials like theirs. But I’ve known seasons when things fell apart. Prayers whispered with confidence seemed to echo back unanswered. Plans quietly unraveled. I’ve felt helpless watching someone I love struggle.
Maybe you’ve had your own version of that.
The prophet Habakkuk in Scripture described a time when everything was failing in Israel — no crops, no animals, no visible provision. No fig trees were blooming.
And yet he said: “Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines … yet I will rejoice in the LORD; I will take joy in the God of my salvation. GOD, the Lord, is my strength …” (Habakkuk 3:17-19).
I will rejoice.
Not because life was suddenly good.
Not because the situation improved.
But because God hadn’t changed.
That’s the part I’m still learning.
Joy isn’t pretending everything is fine. It’s choosing to believe God is near when everything feels uncertain. It’s whispering, You are my strength, when I feel like I don’t have any strength left. It’s sitting quietly in His presence when I don’t have answers.
There are days when my own “fig tree” doesn’t bloom — when something I counted on falls through or the future feels unclear. In those moments, I can let disappointment harden me, or I can let it press me closer to the One who never moves.
God doesn’t promise us steady ground, but He does promise steady footing. He steadies us in places where we never thought we could stand.
With this kind of joy, we don't ignore sorrow — we carry it into the hands of a faithful God.
And somehow, even in the waiting, that is enough.
Dear heavenly Father, teach me to rest at Your feet and rejoice in Your presence, whether in joy or sorrow. Remind me that Your joy is my strength to face every trial and darkness. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
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FOR DEEPER STUDY
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (NIV).
If you look back on a season when your “fig tree” didn’t bloom, where can you now see God’s steady presence?
What is one small way you can practice rejoicing today — not because everything is perfect but because God is near? Share with us in the comments!
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Proverbs 31 Ministries
P.O. Box 3189
Matthews, NC 28106
www.Proverbs31.org
Originally published Wednesday, 13 May 2026.
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