Isaiah 40:30-31
30. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; 31. but those who hope [wait, trust] in 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.

This world has its ways of knocking us all down. Failed investments (I’m talking about investments in other people here), chronic physical pain, body not working like it should, addictions, old age, disasters, etc., and death. We work so had to avoid the pain, to stand in the face of the blowing headwinds of the toils of daily life.

It wasn’t supposed to be this way, it’s not the plan, but it’s where we are thanks to Adam so many years ago. Thanks Adam. Something tells me I’d enjoy the Garden of Eden quite a bit, but probably couldn’t keep my hands off the forbidden fruit. It’s a choice. There are consequences.

The world leads to destruction – it’s Satan’s way. Don’t believe there is Satan? How else do you explain the evil in the world? Just like Christ showed us how to live a Godly life, Satan shows us how to be evil. He is, by a factor of a couple of million, smarter than us. He’s incredibly subtle and he’s not going to be obvious until the end. His joy is your pain. It the opposite of God’s way.

Picking up is hard to do. Even youths in their prime grow tired and weary, they fall. But those who hope in the Lord… Those that hope in the Lord will renew their strength. Though the storms of the world beat on us, buffet us, strike at us, there is boundless strength that comes from God.

There’s power in Christ and his resurrection. He overcame his physical ailments, He overcame death. We grow weary in our own strength. We grow untamable stamina in Christ’s strength. Knowing that no matter what happens to us here doesn’t matter brings incredible strength. Eternity (thank you Jesus!!!) matters. Want an endgame to live for?

Eternity in God’s presence is the only one that matters. It makes everything here seem smaller, less significant. Not less painful now, but less important in light of forever. Eternity takes the sting out of the lashing storms. Eternity give us purpose and meaning. Eternity give us strength.

Hope in the Lord. Wait for the Lord. Trust in the Lord. He knows what he’s doing. He knows where you are. He loves you so strongly, so purely, so perfectly, that we can’t begin to fathom the strength or depth of it. We get glimpses of it and that is enough to give us strength to believe, strength to go on.

Picking up. All day. Every minute. Every Second. Is tiring. So tiring. So violent. So painful. Yet so temporary. It lasts a lifetime and that’s it. Then we face the consequences of our choices. If you’ve chosen Christ, welcome to the amazing eternity of love, joy, and peace in perfection.

Hope, wait, trust in the Lord. Be strong, have faith. Keep picking up with selfless abandon.