Have you ever felt faint? I'm not talking about that feeling where you are looking for that knight in shiny armor to catch you. I'm talking about that feeling of faintness where you can't move forward. You can't breathe because you're overcome by stress and worry. This is the type of faint feeling I'm speaking.
God gives us a solution and encourages us in the book of Isaiah. He promises to give us power when we feel this way. When there comes a point that we feel like we have no might, he promises to increase our strength. Sadly, he tries to do this and we often ignore it. We succumb to the pressure of stress and fretting. We allow ourselves to stay planted in a position that cripples us. We can't move forward nor can we see what is ahead...even when we have a clear picture of what is before us. Instead, we allow this feeling of spiritual lethargy to sap our strength. We ride around in spiritual wheelchairs waiting for someone to push us around. Our vision is often cloudy and our path is overcome by darkness.
As believers, we shouldn't be shocked when this happens. God tells us that even the youth shall faint (and aren't they the ones who are supposed to have all this energy?) And even young men shall fall. So we shouldn't be surprised. It happens to everyone.
But even when it happens, God implores us to WAIT. We are not to become weary. God wants us to WAIT. And yes, waiting is hard, particulary when you have already waited for a long time. But he still tells us to wait. Because in our waiting, God renews our strength. And that is easily said than done. Because as he renews our strength, we have to allow him to do whatever needs to be done in us to make us stronger. Many times, that includes going through rough patches of trials and tribulations, loss and grief, disappointment and despair. God uses whatever he needs to make us better.
And things do get better because now we have a different viewpoint because of the experience. That is what the prophet means when he writes "they shall mount up with wings as eagles". When we develop eagle wings, we now have been strengthened to see things from a different perspective. We see above the fray instead of in the midst of it. Therefore, we aren't "in" it. We have a totally different viewpoint. We can see other views instead of just our own. Isn't it wonderful when we can see someone else's point of view? It makes us more reasonable and we are able to see more clearly. As a result, we become empowered to make better decisions.
When we are "in" it, we tend to get worn out from the constant need to fix it, comment on it or even change it. We have to accept the fact that when we agree to do all of "that" we get exhausted spiritually. There may even be some who love getting in the fray; who mentally love the thrill of winning the argument. They get a turn-on by getting those points across. But spiritually, they become faint. They can't breathe nor can they find the energy to move forward. They become so encumbered by all of it, they often forget who they are and more importantly, they lose focus of their purpose. It is at that moment when they often need others to pick them up. We should all learn a valuable lesson from "them" and learn that there is power in waiting on God.
We should never need anyone to pick us up when God is waiting to do so. We need to learn to run to him and wait on the manifestation that he has already promised. He promises to give us power and strength when we have every right to feel weary and faint.
Walking out this life of faith can often overwhelm us. To most, life's trial can be very difficult. But God is so faithful. He promises, if we learn to wait on him, things won't be as bad as they could be. He will give us the ability to run and not get weary. Even as we walk out life, we don't have to accept faintness of heart. Instead, we need to expect strength to overtake us. We need to expect God to be there because he is never faint nor is he ever weary. When we realize who God really is, then we have to embrace the fact that with him, we can face anything.
Now that is worth waiting for.
