Day Five

Isaiah 40:28-31

28.) Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; His understanding is unsearchable.

29.) He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might He increases strength.

30.) Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted;

31.) but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

         I know a young lady in Kansas City. Oldest child, a boy, is fifteen. The youngest child, also a boy, is three. Between the two boys there are seven sisters. The other day she posted on Facebook that she is not a bad parent, but right then she felt like she has had it. I immediately sent her a note of encouragement. Later, as I was thinking about it, I thought about how much I admire her. I have one child, and he sometimes made me crazy. Imagine having nine, seven of which are girls. Gives me a headache just to think about it.

         This lady’s name is Alexandria, or Alex for short. Every once in a while, once every three months or so, she will post something that expresses her weariness or frustration. But, usually within a few days, she will start to revert to the young woman who loves the Lord and who is dedicated to making her family (marriage, kids, her own college) work. Of course there are times she feels overwhelmed. But she bounces back. Always doing for others, showing the graciousness of the Lord in her life.

         In the above passage, Isaiah is giving a life line to folks dealing with frustration; frustration that often leads to actually giving up. The chapter begins with “Comfort, comfort.” This portion of the chapter is one of my favorite passages in the Bible. Read the passage again. In verse 31 the word ‘wait’ means to serve. It is where we get the word ‘waiter’ or ‘waitress.’ And, the word also has the idea of serving someone while being tied to them. Not physically, but emotionally. So, re-read the passage substituting ‘serve’ for ‘wait.’ (Some translations use the word ‘hope,’ but that is not a faithful translation.)

         Have you read it? Do you see how that changes the meaning? How it electrifies the passage? Why does He give power to the faint and increases strength to those who have felt their might seep away? So that they can regain what they have lost through the struggle and start serving again.

         And the result? Mounting up with wings like eagles, running and not growing weary, walking and not growing faint.

         The best thing to do when you feel beaten is to serve the Lord.

         Today, let’s pray for the renewing of our strength. Let’s figuratively mount up on wings like eagles, run and not grow weary, walk and not faint.