Stronger-Than-Yesterday #3

He gives power to the weak, And to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, And the young men shall utterly fall, But those who wait on 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.
Isaiah 40:29-31

Previously... on Stronger-Than-Yesterday... We see differences between Inner Strength and Outer Strength, the Strength of God and the Strength of Man... And it is plausible to conclude from the verse today that our strength will one day fails us, if all we depend on is outer strength and our own strength.

But the Bible gives us this assurance that when that day comes, there is an alternative far better: to receive strength and power from God. And this promise is available to anyone who's willing to relinquish their own and put on Christ. Jesus says this:

Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Matthew 11:28

That rest that Jesus gives comes as we "wait on the Lord". And the Bible says that as we wait on the Lord, God will renew our strength. Interestingly, the word "renew" in the original Hebrew means "to pass on or away, pass through, pass by, go through, grow up, change, to go on from", "to come on anew, sprout again (of grass)", "to show newness (of tree)", and "to change, substitute, alter, change for better, renew".

So, to "renew" your strength requires a certain passing away and dying of the old strength. It requires a "change, substitute, alter, change for better, renew". That's why the process of waiting on God is not just a passive "waiting", but an active one, where you are changed and renewed.

So the big question/s right now is this:
- Are you coming to the end of your own strength?
- Do you need rest from the work you are doing?
- Are you waiting on God to renew your strength today?

Let's all become 昨日の自分より強く... Stronger than the you of yesterday!!!