When God seems distant
Isaiah 40:27-31
By Ysrael De la Cruz
When we go through hardships or suffering in this world, we wonder what God’s plan would be in those situations. We pray but it seems God is not answering. Some of us have been in situations in which we have no idea what God’s plan or purpose might be for us. It is during those moments that we would truly love to hear from God. During times of uncertainty, when we do not how we’re going to pay the bills or what is going to happen with our health, job; etc. We may begin to question God, doubt his love for us. It is also during these times of uncertainty that we get to display the kind of faith we have.
The prophet Isaiah predicted the destruction of Jerusalem and the Jewish deportation to Babylon. God sent him to warn his people of the calamity that would come due to their disobedience. The Jewish people complained that God did not care about them; they felt God had abandoned them. But the LORD had a message for his people through the prophet Isaiah.
Isaiah 40:27-31
Following Jesus does not exempt you from trials, persecution and suffering in this world. At times, God uses hardships to develop the faith and character of his people. Sometimes God brings us into difficulty, so we get a better perspective of who he is. So we learn to rely more on his power than our own strength.
Then here is what the LORD told his people through the prophet Isaiah. “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’
God knows your situation-(27) He knows what is happening with you and around the world. He knew what people said in their complaint. “my way is hidden from the LORD”
God reminds us who he is: Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God (The Eternal God, the beginning and the end. The one who transcends time and space. The Creator of the ends of the earth.
He is not like us. (v.28) He does not faint or grow weary. His understanding is unsearchable. No one can know the depths of his understanding.
–He is the true source of Power and strength: (v.29) gives power to the weak and increases strength to those who feel powerless.
This reminds me the words of Paul to the church in Ephesus, in the 6th chapter of the Ephe.6:10 Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.
We all may run out of strength and perseverance to continue running our race. God reminds us that he is our strength and power to withstand anything that comes our way.
Isaiah 40:30 Even youths shall faint (be tired) and be weary, and young men shall stumble and fall. But there is hope for those who hope in the LORD.
But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. (v.31)
Those who wait or hope in the LORD are the one who renew their strength.
To hope in the LORD is (to eagerly await, hope, expect) It is to look for something with eager expectation; to rely on something reliable. To wait trustfully.
Those who eagerly wait in the Lord, those who hope and have their expectation in him are the ones who renew their strength.
Examples of people who hoped in the LORD
–Job 13:15 Even if he slay me, I will hope in him.
–Psalm 42:5 Why so downcast O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God; for I shall again praise him.
–Psalm 62:5 find rest o my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him.
What kind of strength?
Strength to ascend above your problem.
–They shall mount up with wings like eagles.
They shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.This is the kind of strength God gives to those who hope in him. God is saying even when you don’t have the strength to keep going; keep waiting on me, keep trusting me. He will provide the strength you need to keep going regardless of the situation. He is the everlasting God who knows our situation; he is the source of power and strength we have. But the promise is for those who eagerly wait on him, for those who hope and trust in him. He is the only one who can get us soaring above any situation in life.
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