Pastor’s Lenten Blog 12

“Those who wait upon 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 40:41)

What does it mean to wait upon the Lord?  A couple of thoughts surface; sometimes to “wait” means to let time pass for the other to act.  You wait with patience, or you wait with anxiety, but you let the time pass until the time is ripe for a particular action or pursuit.  Another meaning of wait is one of serving; to “wait upon” a person is something that people in the restaurant business make their livelihoods off of, and they get good tips or bad tips depending on both the quality of the service and (sometimes) the mentality of the customer.  Yet to wait upon the Lord in this definition of waiting means almost the opposite of the former definition.

Can both be right?  I think so.   Those who work at discerning God’s will in their lives can renew their strength through prayer and reflection; those who serve the Lord with gladness can renew their strength by action.  Maybe it’s two sides of the same coin; perhaps God is saying through Isaiah that if God is in your action and God is in your contemplation, you’re strength can be renewed at all times.  Of course, the trick is to let God do that with us.

Category: Bob's Lenten Blog, Pastor's Blog