WAIT… Until The Day Of Your Showing (PART 1)

WAITING ON GOD

“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.” – Isaiah 40:31 (KJV)

The concept of waiting does not come naturally to men. It can be uncomfortable sometimes as we always want to be on the move.

Man has an innate desire to make progress, so we constantly seek to figure out the next thing. When we become convinced of our next destination in life, we start mapping out steps to get there and taking action towards it. Well, that’s simply the logical thing to do, isn’t it?

But what happens when we act against logic?

The Word of God makes us understand that we are predestined unto good works (Eph. 2:10) and ordained unto specific purposes even before we were formed in our mothers’ wombs (Jer. 1:5). And as we begin to seek a genuine relationship with our heavenly Father, He gives us glimpses of the glorious future He has prepared for us. This picture is often so bright and sparks excitement within us. Acting on the vision immediately and bringing it into reality as quickly as possible can be tempting. “Why wait when the destination is known?” we may ask.

Our anchor scripture (Isaiah 40:31) shows that something interesting happens when we wait on the Lord. Our strength is renewed. The problem with trying to run on your own with the vision God has given you is that you will have to execute it with your strength, and if you are wondering what happens when you attempt to carry out God’s plans with your might, the preceding verse answers that question.

“Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall” – Isaiah 40:30 (KJV)

It is important to note that “youth” and “young men” in this verse are symbols of the strongest of men. A man’s youth is regarded as the strongest season of his life. So there is a guarantee that relying on your strength for life’s journey would bring you to the point of weariness. Waiting on God, on the contrary, perpetually renews our strength.

The anchor scripture’s latter part gives us insight into the resulting effect of waiting upon the Lord.

They Shall Mount Up With Wings As Eagles

At this juncture, it is necessary to pause and reflect on what it means to mount up with wings as eagles. There are certain peculiarities associated with the Eagle that makes its flight phenomenal. Eagles possess powerful vision, which helps them lock in on their prey and navigate the air precisely. They are strong and fearless. Eagles are tenacious. Eagles are high flyers, moving through the air with great speed. The wings of an eagle are primed to support its flight, allowing it to glide through wind currents as it soars high up.

Regarding the above illustration, “mounting up with wings as eagles” is a favourable position. For further understanding, let me show you how this applies to you:

• Waiting on the Lord brings about sharper insight into the assignment for which we have been ordained. Just like the sharp vision of the Eagle, we gain more clarity to our call in His presence. God has the master plan for our lives, and it is only wise that we inquire what the vision entails from Him.
• Also, to possess the strength and tenacity of the Eagle in pursuing our purpose, we ought to constantly assume a posture of waiting on God. Our anchor verse tells us that waiting on God results in the renewal of strength. That implies that the more you remain in the place of waiting, the more your energy bar is refilled. If a phone is plugged into a power source, we can use it for all we desire, yet the battery doesn’t run down. So also is a man constantly plugged into God. He can go about his God-given assignment without getting weary or fainting.
• In addition, “mounting up wings as eagles” gives us the advantage of gliding through and above the obstacles we encounter in our ‘flight’. Just like the wings of the Eagle enables it to soar high above its contemporaries and glide through the strong wind currents, waiting on the Lord brings about similar advantages in our journey through life. When faced with challenges, waiting on the Lord provides the wings we sail through, and those challenges propel us even further.

Hast Thou Not Known?

If we return to verse 28 of Isaiah 40, we find some questions that give us insight into God’s personality.

“Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.” – Isaiah 40:28 (KJV)

We must be aware of the One on Whom we wait. The verse tells us that He is the everlasting God – emphasis on “everlasting”. His Kingdom is forever, and there is no dethroning to Him. It also tells us that He is the Creator of all there is. Nobody knows a thing better than its Creator, so why do you intend to figure out life on your own? We are also introduced to His inexhaustible energy. He doesn’t have off-seasons, and neither does He go on vacations. The Message translation puts it thus: “He doesn’t get tired out, doesn’t pause to catch his breath.”

And in the next verse, we see God’s offer to us… “He gives power to the weak, And to those who have no might He increases strength.” – Isaiah 40:29. Waiting on God is the only way to go if we intend to fulfil God’s purpose for our lives. Regardless of how weak we may be, His presence strengthens us. And like Paul, we can all the more boast in our weaknesses, for therein is the power of God made perfect.

It is one thing to wait, and it is another thing to know “how” to wait. In the second part of this series, we’ll consider what to do while we wait.