Discipleship

February 2, 2021

Scripture Reading:
Isaiah 40:21-31

To whom then will you compare me,
   or who is my equal? says the Holy One.
Lift up your eyes on high and see:
   Who created these?
He who brings out their host and numbers them,
   calling them all by name;
because he is great in strength,
   mighty in power,
   not one is missing.

Why do you say, O Jacob,
   and speak, O Israel,
‘My way is hidden from the Lord,
   and my right is disregarded by my God’?
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.
He gives power to the faint,
   and strengthens the powerless.
Even youths will faint and be weary,
   and the young will fall exhausted;
but those 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. –Isaiah 40:25-31

The phrase to wait for includes the connotation of twisting, stretching, and enduring*. While I do not think I have ever thought about waiting that way, I certainly have experienced it. I sat in my car for about 30 minutes, awaiting the opportunity to get my first COVID vaccination. I twisted in my car seat several times and got out to stretch my legs a couple of times until the signal to move to the line was given. Frankly, I was thankful for the time to listen to the news on the radio in a warm car rather than standing six feet from anybody in the cold. I entered the building immediately. A well-organized information-gathering and temperature-taking assembly line whisked me to a seat after my shot to wait another 15 minutes to assure I would not have an adverse reaction.

The words twisting, stretching, and enduring all carry the connotation of action, giving wait for a different feel. God with us provides the energy to mount up with wings like eagles when we are exhausted in body and soul. The image of the health care workers addressing COVID comes to mind. We need to have the same commitment vested in the loving energy of the all-powerful God as we work to heal a broken world.

Prayer: Lord, engage us in the act of waiting as we work to seek justice and show mercy as healing acts in an exhausted world.  Amen.

*https://biblehub.com/hebrew/6960.htm

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.