February 28th, 2026
Saturday, February 28
Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.
He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.
Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;
but those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.
~ Isaiah 40:28-31
Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.
He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.
Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;
but those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.
~ Isaiah 40:28-31
______________________________________
These words from Isaiah give us important contrasts. Isaiah points out: The Lord is God…the Lord is the creator. The Lord will not become tired or weary….But humans…they will get tired and weary; they will stumble and fall.
We live in a world that actually thinks we can overcome our humanity, our weaknesses, limits, and failures. And we restlessly strive for this as if it’s a good thing. Think of the athletic records we can break! Think of the endless supply of products to consume! Think of how much more money we can make! Think of all of the happiness it will all bring!
I’m not so optimistic. Neither is God, according to Scripture. Maybe there are things we can overcome. But there’s also a deeply unhealthy way of thinking that comes with this that leads to more striving, more busyness, more disillusionment when we realize we’re human and limited. And it sets us (and our kids) up for depression, burn-out, and unhealthy comparison. That sounds wonderful, doesn’t it?
It’s all “chasing after the wind” as the writer of the Old Testament book Ecclesiastes says (Ecclesiastes 1:1-14). Even our best technology and attempts to overcome and push past our limits will all fail. Another Monster drink…a few more hours at work…better AI tools… Eventually we’ll be face to face with the problem: The Lord is God…but humans…are weak, weary, and prone to fail and fall. Yet, we remain restless striving to overcome it.
The way to deal with our human limits is not to overcome them. This is where Lent draws us into the deeply counter-cultural resistance of walking with the Lord. In the Scripture above, Isaiah does not say try harder and overcome. Isaiah says “wait on the Lord.”
I don’t know about you, but waiting is not really in the lexicon of life in our world. But it’s everywhere in the Old Testament, particularly the Psalms and prophets. Over and over again…wait on the Lord.
Now, let’s be clear. This is NOT just the Christian version of the Heinz ketchup commercial that “good things come to those who wait.” Waiting on the Lord is not for our self-growth or so we can reap some personal benefit.
Waiting on the Lord serves this purpose: for us humans to know in practical experience what it means to live as we were made. We are made as creatures dependent on God for everything. And this is GOOD. Because this is how we’re made, we should probably not try to overcome it as if God didn’t know what God was doing.
As Rich Mullins writes: “We are not as strong as we think we are.” We can’t see what’s ahead. We are not the ones who set the schedule or determine the outcomes. We are not the builders of our lives or even of God’s kingdom. We must learn to be people of waiting. In waiting, we learn dependence on something other than ourselves. We embrace our limits. When we learn this through practice, we actually find joy and freedom.
______________________________________
These words from Isaiah give us important contrasts. Isaiah points out: The Lord is God…the Lord is the creator. The Lord will not become tired or weary….But humans…they will get tired and weary; they will stumble and fall.
We live in a world that actually thinks we can overcome our humanity, our weaknesses, limits, and failures. And we restlessly strive for this as if it’s a good thing. Think of the athletic records we can break! Think of the endless supply of products to consume! Think of how much more money we can make! Think of all of the happiness it will all bring!
I’m not so optimistic. Neither is God, according to Scripture. Maybe there are things we can overcome. But there’s also a deeply unhealthy way of thinking that comes with this that leads to more striving, more busyness, more disillusionment when we realize we’re human and limited. And it sets us (and our kids) up for depression, burn-out, and unhealthy comparison. That sounds wonderful, doesn’t it?
It’s all “chasing after the wind” as the writer of the Old Testament book Ecclesiastes says (Ecclesiastes 1:1-14). Even our best technology and attempts to overcome and push past our limits will all fail. Another Monster drink…a few more hours at work…better AI tools… Eventually we’ll be face to face with the problem: The Lord is God…but humans…are weak, weary, and prone to fail and fall. Yet, we remain restless striving to overcome it.
The way to deal with our human limits is not to overcome them. This is where Lent draws us into the deeply counter-cultural resistance of walking with the Lord. In the Scripture above, Isaiah does not say try harder and overcome. Isaiah says “wait on the Lord.”
I don’t know about you, but waiting is not really in the lexicon of life in our world. But it’s everywhere in the Old Testament, particularly the Psalms and prophets. Over and over again…wait on the Lord.
Now, let’s be clear. This is NOT just the Christian version of the Heinz ketchup commercial that “good things come to those who wait.” Waiting on the Lord is not for our self-growth or so we can reap some personal benefit.
Waiting on the Lord serves this purpose: for us humans to know in practical experience what it means to live as we were made. We are made as creatures dependent on God for everything. And this is GOOD. Because this is how we’re made, we should probably not try to overcome it as if God didn’t know what God was doing.
As Rich Mullins writes: “We are not as strong as we think we are.” We can’t see what’s ahead. We are not the ones who set the schedule or determine the outcomes. We are not the builders of our lives or even of God’s kingdom. We must learn to be people of waiting. In waiting, we learn dependence on something other than ourselves. We embrace our limits. When we learn this through practice, we actually find joy and freedom.
______________________________________
For reflection:
Prayer:
God of peace, we are dependent on you for everything. We fool ourselves into thinking that we are strong in ourselves. Open our eyes to the ways we still give in, so that we might be free. Amen.
- Read Psalm 27, 33, 130. These Psalms focus on “waiting” on the Lord. But you have to read the entire Psalm in context. What do these Psalms tell us about waiting on the Lord? Why is waiting important for faith?
- Are there parts of your life where waiting is difficult? Why? In what ways are you waiting on the Lord now?
- For those with kids: Talk about a time when they had to wait. What was it like? Why was it difficult? What did they learn? Looking back, how did the Lord help them?
Prayer:
God of peace, we are dependent on you for everything. We fool ourselves into thinking that we are strong in ourselves. Open our eyes to the ways we still give in, so that we might be free. Amen.
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