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
The Bible has a lot to say about strength.
Probably the most familiar verse folks think about when it comes to strength is found in Nehemiah:
"For the joy of the Lord is your strength"(Neh. 8:10). One of my favorite verses is in Isaiah forty:
"But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength..." (Isa. 40:31).
There is strength for the body.
There is also strength for the mind; and most importantly, there is strength for the spirit.
Romans says,"For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly" (Rom. 5:6). This strength is what enables us to live a victorious life. It comes from the presence of the Lord. It is his mighty strength that empowers us for living.When Paul addressed the church of Corinth concerning issues that had hindered the church spiritually, he ended with sharing about the Lord's Supper. He told them:
"For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. FOR THIS CAUSE, many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep" (1 Cor. 11:29, 30).
From what we can ascertain out of this verse is the simple fact that many times people struggle with weakness - spirit, soul, and body, because they haven't rightly discerned the Lord's body [that can involve both our relationship with one another as well as recognizing the finished work of Christ on the cross].
If Christ has become our strength, then for there to be weakness it can only mean one thing: that somewhere there is a breach, an impasse that has prevented the divine flow of strength to empower us for living.By our discerning the Lord's body, we find the power of exchange - our weakness for his strength. In fact, Paul even told us:"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might" (Eph. 6:10).
There is a strength that comes from our union with Christ that lifts us up about the weak and beggarly elements of the world (Gal. 4:9). It is in his strength that we rise above the taxation and vexation of worldly things.In Psalm ninety-six, David said:"Honour and majesty are before him: strength and beauty are in his sanctuary" (Psa. 96:6).
There is a strength that comes when we gather in his name; when we honor him by making his sanctuary our delight.David also said:"I was glad when they said unto me, let us go into the house of the Lord"(Psa. 122:1).
Again, he said:"One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple" (Psa. 27:4).
Part of honoring the Lord is finding our delight in gathering together as God's people.Strength also comes through waiting in God's presence with an expectant heart.
The more time you spend in God's presence, particularly when it is finding that place of delighting yourself in him, the stronger you will become. It will affect you mentally and physically, just as it will spiritually. When folks fail to maintain a constant vigil or learn how to practice the presence of God in their life, then the pressures of this world will inevitably weigh on them and try to drag them down. Being physically weak and mentally weak are often symptoms of being spiritually weak. However, if you will build yourself up spiritually, then more times than not, you will find yourself growing stronger in every area of your life where you have more energy, more vigor, more joy, and more enthusiasm for the things that count in life.
