Verse of the Day

31 But those who wait on 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 40:31 (NKJV)

Quote of the day

“God is always doing 10,000 things in your life, and you may be aware of three of them.”

— John Piper, Desiring God

Reflection

Waiting on the Lord renews our strength. It’s not a pause in God’s work; it’s often where His deepest work begins. Today’s verse echoes this sentiment and encourages us to endure difficult times. Sometimes the shift begins internally, as we feel the pressure in our lives sharpening us. The wait gives us the opportunity to develop not only endurance, but also character traits such as patience and spiritual resilience. While they are often uncomfortable or even costly, these challenges will often expand our capacity. 

Instead of allowing such situations to overwhelm us, we must rely on God for continued sustenance so that weariness doesn’t become our reality. If we remain in our self-reliant sphere, we might fall into the trap of overestimating our role in God’s plan for us. Meanwhile, our reliance on God reshapes everything. It keeps us humble, reminds us that God is in absolute control, and ensures that we remain confident that His timing always prevails for good reason. Surrendering control is not always easy, but if we remember God’s track record, it should become compelling for us to do so. Not out of coercion or force, but a strong desire to delight God and do things His way.

What God develops in us while we wait shows up both internally and externally. Maybe we have allowed negative traits to enter our behavior over time, and they are blocking us from God’s next steps. Perhaps our position of authority at our work has cultivated pride. Maybe we’ve become afraid of failure and are paralyzed by inaction. Is it possible that we’re afraid of letting others down or even seeing ourselves stumble? Could our prior strengths, like patience or godly motivations, have slowly faded? We cannot afford to allow impatience to fuel our desire for instant gratification or to transition to acting with a self-serving mindset.

All these avenues of regression are realities we need to take inventory of, and one way God catches our attention to do so is to slow us down. Why would God send us into the next season unprepared for the responsibility, influence, and pressure that come with it? The reality is that there’s a strong chance we need to lean back into humility, faithfulness, and obedience. Establishing the spiritual disciplines integral to His glory and our success is essential for us before He wants us to move beyond the wait.

Recognizing that God prepares us before He promotes us can shift our attitude towards waiting. Instead of looking at it as a matter of punishment, we can embrace it as a sign of His love for us. Why would we want a promotion that could open the door to larger-scale failure if we still need to get our house in order where we are?

Application

How can we maximize the periods in our lives that involve elements of waiting? The first step we can take is to realize that we are still welcome to take action. Sometimes we need to step out of our bubbles and make moves to determine if God is opening a door for us. We don’t want the wait to slide into an extended season of passivity when, in reality, God is inviting us to finally take a step of faith.

There are also circumstances in which we are waiting on one front while still active on several others. You may be waiting on God’s provision in one area of your life, but He may want you to remain persistent and faithful in the others that aren’t on hold. It’s easy for us to let the waiting bleed into too many sectors at once. Meanwhile, God really wants us to stay steady and show Him that we’re continuing to follow His path for us, even in what is already established. This may happen while we wait for other areas to unfold in His time.

For example, if you want something to happen in the context of a new dating relationship, don’t let it distract you from God’s mission for you in your work. Otherwise, that may indicate that you’re idolizing it and holding back from areas where He has called you to retain as your primary focus. God often wants to give us gifts that complement His calling to us, not those that would distract us from putting Him first.

If you’re looking to apply for a new role at work, don’t compromise on the fantastic work you’ve accomplished, and keep your standards high across the board. We don’t want to have one foot out the door before God has given us clear access and opened the opportunity for that transition. Everything we touch, especially as ambassadors for Christ, reflects a certain level of purpose and excellence. Keep doing extraordinary work, no matter how simple or complicated your current role is. People notice, and we should do it all as if unto God. It is honorable to continue operating at a level that glorifies Him while we wait.

Remember, God is at work in what we can and cannot see. What we may feel is stagnation or even regression may actually serve as points of clarity for us to build from. Imagine remaining in mediocrity only to realize that if we had failed harder, we would have course-corrected sooner and moved further along by now? It’s rough and in some sense unfortunate that it takes these kinds of circumstances to grab our attention, but it’s a reality. 

Those consequences are sometimes God’s hidden blessing, prompting us to change our ways. So whether it’s obvious to us or not, whether it takes extreme measures or a simple nudge of the Holy Spirit, or perhaps something going on in the spiritual realm we cannot even fathom, God is still ultimately working behind the scenes for us when we can’t understand what’s going on. Don’t lose faith just because the process doesn’t coincide with the timeline you envisioned.

Finally, don’t rush the process when God is inviting you to take it slow and absorb the wisdom. Waiting with God shouldn’t look like a punishment, obstacle, or burden. It’s way more important that we abide in Christ and step in with willingness and patience than to try to push through prematurely. Keep in mind that while God gives us a small piece of the blueprint we’re ready to see, He has full knowledge of everything to come. 

Look back on everything in your life right now. I assure you, if you don’t see it clearly already, you may one day realize that even the suffering had its place in God’s plan. That’s the toughest pill to swallow when we’re in those circumstances, but one objective glance backward can help us to remember that even in those circumstances, He was more than faithful. So if you find yourself in a waiting period, don’t lose hope. Your Heavenly Father doesn’t intend to leave or forsake you. He who began a good work in you will see it through to its completion.

Prayer

Dear God,

Thank You, Father, for Your presence in my life. Thank You for giving me seasons of waiting to learn from before You re-position me according to Your will. Every day I wake up, I realize how You are building me up to accomplish Your will in Your timing as You see fit. 

Please help me to remain faithful to the process You have in store for me. I need to remember that Your plans and timing are always superior to mine. Please help me to remember that one of the best things I can do in the waiting is to pray for my actions to align with Your will for me.

Please give me the strength to ask for forgiveness, to repent of my sins, and to wholeheartedly commit my works to You. Please help me not to let the accuser of the brethren, the Devil, infiltrate my thoughts, body, mind, soul, spirit, or any other aspect of my being with his lies.

Thank You for enriching my life with access to Your truth. Your Word is the Sword of the Spirit, and I need to wage war against the adversary. I know that no matter how many times I have fallen, You have always been there to pick me up.

Please help me to surrender to You at all times, including when it feels like the best I can do in certain areas of my life is to wait for Your timing. I am so thankful You didn’t give me what I wanted before I was ready to receive it. I don’t want Your gifts to ever distract me from You, the Giver of the gifts.

Thank You for giving me strength. I know that just like the eagle in today’s verse, You will always renew my strength and help me. I don’t need to grow weary or faint when I rely on You and rest in Your sovereignty.

I pray in Jesus Christ’s precious, holy, and mighty name.

Amen.

“25 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.”

Matthew 16:25 (NKJV).

When we pursue self-preservation, we do not reach the greatest return on investment in an eternal sense. Furthermore, albeit counter-intuitively, when we serve God, we deny ourselves temporal pleasures for a lasting sense of purpose and satisfaction here on earth as well. Once we develop a taste for accomplishing the will of God, we will no longer find the same joy elsewhere. We will see our old pet sins and idols for the fruitless and time-consuming nature they inherently possess. We will never regret denying ourselves earthly pleasures for eternal blessings (Luke 9:23, Romans 8:18). If the sacrifices we make are for better positioning ourselves to glorify God, we will eventually see the byproduct of those decisions.

It is entirely in God’s hands what aspect of His blessings we will enjoy here on earth and which others manifest themselves in Heaven forever (Luke 18:29-30). I would venture to say frequently the things worth pursuing involve calculated risks. If the reward is immediate and there is little to no sacrifice involved, it typically indicates that such endeavors are not worthy of our time. Therefore, we need to condition ourselves to think long-term concerning our choices. Our daily activities should serve a greater purpose down the road.

Of course, there is a time and place to enjoy God’s blessing of rest and seize opportunities to appreciate leisure activity (Matthew 11:28). However, the more significant portion of our time should question each action based on its merit from an eternal vantage point. It takes discipline and sacrifice to write a book, edit it, find an agent, pursue a traditional publisher, and bring it to market. While this process doesn’t happen overnight, you will see your work come to fruition if you stick with it. If the book has content that will lead others to Jesus Christ or encourage existing believers to further their walk, there is more than enough motivation to fuel your efforts (Acts 20:24, Matthew 28:19-20). This journey can bring a writer great satisfaction and joy, but it is undoubtedly not something even the best authors can do in a short time frame.

One noteworthy thing to consider is that we find our area of giftedness that we can apply to serve God before we embark on the journey. You may see me write a book, but you won’t see me pursue a singing career as a Christian music artist. These are both creative outlets that have the potential to honor and bring glory to God, but they are different skill sets. I know that I am not a skilled vocalist. Sometimes, it takes some honest introspection to come to terms with this, especially when your dream involves something you’re not naturally adept at. On the flip side, a good work ethic has a lot to do with it, so we don’t want to get prematurely discouraged and dismiss our potential. There is a possibility that if you stick with something you love for long enough, in due time, the practice will differentiate you as a tremendous talent. With that said, it helps a great deal to have some natural aptitude at what you commit your time to do.

Over the years, I have realized some people excel at their craft but do not get the chance to share it on a large platform. Meanwhile, others who are arguably inferior in their ability do so on a massive scale (Ecclesiastes 9:11). Therefore, I take comfort in serving God, whether it is in relative obscurity or with a worldwide audience. While my reach may be small, our God is infinitely vast. As long as I put in my side of the effort, which His grace empowers, He may decide to exalt me in terms of developing a broader audience.

There’s no shame in reaching out to a small number of people with the Gospel. If all an entire lifetime of my writings did was lead one person to come to saving faith, it would be 100% worthwhile. God may even delight specifically in observing my motivations do not revolve around achieving fame or monetary compensation above serving my Creator. Another possibility is that He is preparing me for that in the future. There are times God may decide to shape our character, teach us lessons, or equip us through experiences before our exaltation occurs (Matthew 23:11-12).

The last thing we should want to do is risk finding fame or fortune and losing our intimate relationship with God in the process. How often have we heard of stories where believers were not ready for the challenges of the platform they obtained? In a nutshell, we must truly desire to make less of ourselves and more of God before making that kind of transition (John 3:30). Otherwise, we may be exposed to pride or lose our identity amid people making a bigger deal about us than they should. We know that all the talents, gifts, and resources are all God’s. If we lose sight of that and our humility, it may prove a lethal combination and destroy the credibility of our ministry efforts (Proverbs 16:18).

In the end, we should keep our eyes on Jesus Christ and eternity to determine the appropriate short-term and long-term goals. If we desire to reflect Him in what we do, it will display itself in the majority of our actions (John 13:13-15). For instance, it’s not a good enough reason to pursue a relationship or marriage solely because you think it might make you happy or fill a void. Instead, we should determine if we glorify God more together with that person than if we remain single. Ask yourself if the person shares your values and encourages you to draw closer to God or pulls you further away from Him (“The Surpassing Goal: Marriage Lived for the Glory of God” by John Piper).

Another example may involve making a transition to a new career. You might want to question whether there are any ethical dilemmas associated with your new job. Is there anything in your potential new role that requires you to violate your Christian convictions? Another consideration revolves around the opportunity cost of the shift. Will you have less free time to dedicate to serving and ministry efforts that are a critical part of your goals? If you make a modest salary at a job that affords you the possibility of sowing seeds of the Gospel, you might want to think twice before you change career paths solely based on a higher salary, for instance. There are so many variables to consider that we need to assess them on a case-by-case basis accordingly. As such, it is critical to pray and rely on the multitude of counselors that God may have graciously surrounded us with for their input when appropriate (Proverbs 11:14).

Instead of making hasty decisions based on our emotions or even sound logic, bringing it to God in prayer is always an advisable course of action (James 1:5). Who knows how much trouble you might avoid and eternally valuable seeds you might be able to sow by simply making one more good choice and avoiding a bad one. Moreover, if we set apart some time to contemplate everything with God before making decisions, it can alter the course of our entire lives and our ability to do good works for God in the future.

However, no matter how much we pray and prepare, we are imperfect, and eventually, specific issues require a leap of faith (“What is a leap of faith?” GotQuestions.org). May God help us all as we take that leap with a desire to invest our lives in the things that matter. Let our motivations revolve around our Maker instead of maximizing personal pleasure or earthly gain. If He sees that His glory is our inspiration, I am confident that He will not allow us to stumble permanently (Proverbs 24:16). Instead, he will rescue us from pitfalls and provide ways of escape from temptation to help us navigate a better future as we learn to lean on Him perpetually (1 Corinthians 10:13).