The #1 Way to Renew Your Strength
Have you ever felt overwhelmed or burned out by your circumstances or life situation? Perhaps you are a caregiver who is trying to balance caring for others while taking care of your own needs.
You might be a stay-at-home mother, teacher, or the family breadwinner who feels the weight of your obligations. Maybe you serve others in ministry, but navigating one challenge after another is starting to exhaust you. You might even be overcome by health issues and unable to participate in the pursuits you used to enjoy. The daily activities of life itself can be enough to overwhelm those of us who have debilitating health challenges.
Have you sensed the Lord is calling you to rest, but you just push on and pray for God’s strengthening power?
Friends, I have done this more times than I can count. And I always end up burned out, in greater pain, and ultimately bedridden from pushing beyond my limitations. Physical weariness isn’t just physical; it takes a toll on our minds and spirits.
We need a way to renew our strength when we are exhausted, burned out, and feeling like giving up entirely. We already know that we need to take care of our bodies by resting, eating nutritiously, and, if possible, exercising. But God’s Word tells us how to cultivate the inner strength that makes it possible to endure difficult circumstances and not give up.
God promises to renew our strength when we wait upon Him.
“But those who wait upon the Lord will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not faint” (Isaiah 40:31 BSB, emphasis mine).
For Those Who Hate to Wait
What does waiting upon the Lord mean to you? The phrase might make you feel anxious because, well, who likes to wait? But God doesn’t burden us in our weakness. Waiting upon the Lord comes with a promise of renewed strength.
What a gracious promise! God doesn’t call us to conjure up our own strength. We can wait upon the Lord in weakness, during suffering, and despite trials. But what does waiting upon the Lord mean—and how do we do it?
First, it helps to know the meaning of the original Hebrew word for waiting used in this scripture. Its deeper meaning is lost in the English translation. Qavah, according to Strong’s Hebrew, means “to wait or look eagerly for.” It is originally derived from a primitive word that means to bind together, twist, and stretch that denotes the tension of enduring.*
Waiting upon the Lord is not burdensome. Eagerly seeking the Lord helps you to endure for the long haul.
But this truth isn’t all we can glean from the passage! Another Hebrew term associated with waiting, or quvah, is a word that suggests the tension of a rope or threads that are gathered together to make the whole stronger than the sum of its parts.
A rope made of many strands can endure the weight of a heavy burden. We renew our strength when we wholeheartedly seek and obey the Lord who daily bears our heavy burdens.
Is a heavy burden testing your inner strength today? Remember that a rope’s strands are twisted together in the same direction to give it the strength to carry the load and endure without breaking. Do you want the strength to endure? Love, trust, and obey God with every “strand” of your life—your heart, soul, mind, and strength.
The Divided Heart
Is your heart divided—sometimes seeking after God, other times forgetting about Him and following your own way?
“For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him” (2 Chronicles 16:9).
We receive divine strength from the Lord when are hearts are wholeheartedly devoted to Him. When we feel weak or weary, we can continue walking by faith because we know that God will strengthen us in due time.
How to Wait
Waiting upon the Lord is not a passive activity! Here are some ways to wait upon the Lord with your whole life:.
Wait upon God with your choices by obeying the Lord and following Him. What is one way you will obey God’s Word today?
Wait upon God with your strength by surrendering your life to Jesus and serving with the strength that God provides. How can you use your gifts for the Lord?
Wait upon God with your heart and mind by loving Him, fixing your thoughts on Jesus, and setting your mind on things above. What Scripture verse will you ponder this week?
Wait upon God with your speech by proclaiming His Word, sharing the good things He has done for you, and praying with thanksgiving. How will your words glorify God today?
Are you struggling with health issues or other burdens today? Trusting in and waiting upon the Lord will equip you with the strength to endure. Then you can proclaim, along with the apostle Paul, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day” (2 Corinthians 4:16). My prayer is that you will be strengthened by the Lord’s power and comforted by His love as you continually wait upon Him.
For the Comments: What is one way you will wait upon the Lord today?
*Brown-Driver-Brigs, www.biblehub.com/hebrew/6960.htm
