Joy | March 10
Wait on the Lord;be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the Lord!
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.
Wait on the LORD, and keep His way, and He shall exalt you to inherit the land…
… the salvation of the righteous is from the LORD; he is their strength in the time of trouble.
Psalm 27:14, Isaiah 40:31, Psalm 37:34;39
Father, we are very impatient, by nature. Not only do we fail to wait upon Your leading but we naturally want to know what tomorrow will bring. You teach us to say “Lord willing” when we announce a goal or a plan of action. That helps remind us that we may make plans but we need to pause and to ask ourselves if we are truly consulting with You, praying for Your will to be done.
We see that in learning to wait upon You, our strength is renewed. Does that also mean that when we plunge ahead without You, we do so in weakness? Father, if You are to be our strength in times of trouble, surely we must take steps to make that be true.
We also see that in waiting upon You, we are strenghened, able to soar, as it were, as an eagle. Father, we want to access Your strength to run and not be weary, when all the evidence points towards our collapse. It is in Your strength and wisdom that we move forward, against all odds. How else could it be? What we begin in our own strength is a weak starting point. Help us today to make ambitious plans to serve You and our fellow man, relying upon You as our companion and tutor.
Father, may we exhort one another to love and obey Your Holy word and to keep Your way. Teach us new truths, afresh every day, so that the life You have given us might bring glory to you.
Help us Father not to be overwhelmed with the cares of this world, so preoccupied that we leave You out of the issues we face and the decisions we must make. Joy does not come easy to a burdened heart. Help us look past the moment and to focus on the perfection that awaits us. Our faith in Your love can and will sustain us.
We pray this day for your Spirit and our spirit to be as one. That is a huge hope, Father, but we know it is Your will for each of us. In Jesus’ Holy name, we pray, amen.
Bruce Caldwell
The Sola Scriptura Project
