Welcome to another day the Lord has made that we should rejoice and be glad in. (Psalms 118:24)

Today we’ll look at how waiting on the LORD makes us better.

In today’s scripture, Isaiah 40:29‭-‬31 (KJV), we’re encouraged to wait on the LORD…
He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength… Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:… but they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Consider…
It’s easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of life. At times it feels like we’re too busy to slow down, pause or God forbid, stop. Yet, burnout is a real thing. It often manifests itself in physical and mental health issues. Sometimes it takes breakdowns to force us to sit down. One of the statements I hear people say to others in these moments is, “God is telling you to rest.” While it’s true that God tells us to rest, it’s also true that sometimes our strength just gives out.

Verse 30 of today’s scripture says, “Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall.” The fact is, our frail frames have limited capacity and energy, and when our tanks are empty, our minds and bodies stop.

Nevertheless, until we shutdown because we’re rundown from running on the treadmill of ‘work harder to survive’, we’ll keep hustling and bustling our way through life. May I tell you that I’ve learned that running on the hamster wheel to chase resources is futile. It’s taken me decades, but I finally stopped and paid attention to God’s wisdom in Psalms 127:2 (ERV). It says…
It is a waste of time to get up early and stay up late, trying to make a living. The Lord provides for those he loves, even while they are sleeping.

The Holy Spirit emphasized the futility of my efforts by sharing the wisdom of Ecclesiastes 6:7‭-‬9 (ERV), which says…
People work and work to feed themselves, but they are never satisfied… In the same way a wise person is no better than a fool is. It is better to be a poor person who knows how to accept life as it is… It is better to be happy with what you have than to always want more and more. Always wanting more and more is useless. It is like trying to catch the wind.

Then, the Holy Spirit made it plain, stop going after resources and go to the source. He ran me to Matthew 6:31‭-‬32 (ERV), where Jesus said, “Don’t worry and say, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’… That’s what those people who don’t know God are always thinking about. Don’t worry, because your Father in heaven knows that you need all these things.

What struck me, was people who don’t know God always think about resources to survive. In contrast, those of us who know God, should always be thinking of Him, who is the Source of everything we need. As a matter of fact, Jesus says that in the next verse…
What you should want most is God’s kingdom and doing what he wants you to do. Then he will give you all these other things you need. – Matthew 6:33 ERV

I thought to myself, in the words of Dallas Cowboy QB Dak Prescott, “okay, here we go, that’s it!”, FOCUS ON GOD.

That’s what Isaiah 40:31 is flashing like a neon light to us, FOCUS ON GOD. You see waiting requires trust and faith in the ability and willingness of who we’re waiting on. Waiting on God isn’t about our inability, but it’s instead about His ability. Even more precious, waiting on God isn’t about ignoring the present, but it’s about focusing on His presence.

Today the Holy Spirit is impressing upon me that God is trying to get our attention, to make Him the center of our intentions. God’s saying wait until I show up so that you come up to what I have planned for you. Eagles soar in the heavens by riding the wind, God is telling us, we glide through this life by relying on Him. And you know what, when storms come, Eagles simply go higher. What do you think God’s telling us to do in the midst of our storms? 🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾

Lastly, the Holy Spirit is stressing the fact that waiting on God allows renewing. He is telling me…

• Wait on the LORD before you speak, and you’ll have a renewed talk
• Wait on the LORD before you step, and you’ll have a renewed walk
• Wait on the LORD before you act, and you’ll have a renewed behavior
• Wait on the LORD before you sin, and you’ll be renewed by your Savior

Let’s make this a waiting Wednesday, where we allow God to renew our thoughts with His. If we do, I believe we’ll run and not get weary, and walk and not faint as He promised!

Wait on the LORD, and leave better (renewed) than before He came.

Today’s song is…
They That Wait

Blessings 4HG (1 Corinthians 10:31)