Wednesday, August 5th

Wednesday, August 5

Isaiah 40:27-31

Why do you say, O Jacob,
 and speak, O Israel,
“My way is hidden from the Lord,
    and my right is disregarded by my God”?  Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
 the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
 his understanding is unsearchable.  He gives power to the faint,
 and to him who has no might he increases strength.  Even youths shall faint and be weary,
  and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for 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.

I know a number of people at FBCG who have completed multiple marathon races. I am in awe of those people! I think they're a little crazy, but I am in awe! I have great respect for what they do because I once got it in my head that I wanted to run a marathon. I had always been an athlete, playing football, basketball and baseball, but there was just something intriguing about seeing if I could push myself to run a 26 mile race.

So, along with a friend of mine who was more of a runner, we signed up for a marathon that was to take place in about 6 months. And we started to run together. I was in decent shape so getting to where we were running 5 miles only took a couple of weeks. We ran in a 10K as a practice and I did great. Then we got serious.

Over the next couple of months we got to where we were running 14 miles or so twice each week. I was starting to believe I could actually run a marathon! Then I was given an assignment for work that meant I had to travel for almost a month straight, right over the time of the scheduled marathon. It meant I would not be able to run in the marathon we had signed up for. My friend decided he would still run while I decided to try to stay in shape during my trip so that maybe I could run in another race.

At least that was the plan.

We both found it was much more difficult to go on ridiculously long training runs without someone running next to you. He eventually ran the marathon by himself, and finished, but he finished walking. I quit my training and have never again run as far as 10 miles at a time.

A very long time ago the prophet Isaiah wrote about how we all tired and weary sooner or later. Spiritual fatigue comes in many shapes and sizes. We might grow tired of praying for God’s help in a situation that seems to only grow worse by the day. We may grow weary of our own sinful frailties and doubt that God’s forgiveness continues to be extended to us. We sometimes get to the place where we aren’t sure we can take another step in the journey of faith.

And the prophet writes:

Have you not known? Have you not heard?
 The Lord is the everlasting God,
 the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
 his understanding is unsearchable.  He gives power to the faint,
 and to him who has no might he increases strength.  Even youths shall faint and be weary,
 and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for 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.

So when you aren’t sure if you can take another step, remember that the One who never grows weary is running right beside you!

Pastor Brian Coffey