Supernatural Power: How To Get It, Why You Need It

Isaiah 40:27-31 “Why do you say, O Jacob, and complain, O Israel

My way is hidden from the Lord, my cause is disregarded by my God?

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 hope 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.” (NIV)

I was standing in line at the drug store today waiting for a Shingles vaccine. Yah, just living my best life over here! In front of me was a stylish young mom, well dressed holding a western style purse with long tassels. On the end of the lovely tassels swung her little boy.

She was angry.

She yanked him off and told him to stop.

The problem was, he had been calling her, asking her a question over and over but she ignored him. So he started whining and complaining and then began swinging on her tassels so she would listen.

I feel like that little boy sometimes. I’m calling, praying, crying out to the Lord, trying to get his attention and when all I hear is silence I assume he’s angry and ignoring me. And of course when I believe he’s ignoring me, I give myself permission to act in ways that aren’t wise.

The Israelites must have felt that way too because Isaiah calls them out. He exposes two barriers that are rendering them powerless in their lives.

1. “Why do you say, O Jacob…” We’ve talked before about the power and weight of our words. What you say, you already believe in your heart. The Israelites were telling people, as if it was fact, that God couldn’t see their situation and that he didn’t care. Proverbs 18:21 says that death and life are in the power of the tongue. Physical. Spiritual. Mental. Emotional. Death or life, you are affected by your words and so are the people listening to you.
2. “…and complain, O Israel” The Greek word for a complainer means one who is discontent with his lot in life. Psalm 139:16 says that all of the days ordained for me were written in the Lord’s book before even one of them came to be. That means the difficult days as well as the good days. When we complain, we speak against the very life God gave us. We condemn the work he created for us to do and we slander our Creator.

If you look at vs 28-29 there is a rebuke to the sayers – Do you not know? and the complainers – Have you not heard?

Israel needed a refresher and so do we:

• The Lord is the Everlasting God
• Creator of the ends of the earth (capital C)
• He never tires or grows weary, unlike us
• His wisdom and understanding is so high above ours it is humanly impossible to grasp
• HE gives strength to the weary, it doesn’t come from a special diet or a self-help book
• HE increases the power of the weak, not from some new exercise regimen or vitamin mix
• And just in case you think you’re the only one with all the problems we see that no one is exempt from feelings of failure and weakness, even young people struggle

Complainers will complain.

Whiners will whine.

Does that change who God is? It never will.

Regardless of age or situation we have a great promise that if we put our hope in the Lord and wait on him we’ll receive a renewal, a refreshing of our strength.

Waiting or hoping in the Lord is relinquishing the desire to control. It’s the decision to stop manipulating your life (or other’s) for your own ends and start seeking the will of God.

The word “hope” in Hebrew has a root meaning implying a strand of rope or a spider’s web. It’s the idea of individual pieces being bound and twisted together to form a strong cord.

Isn’t that a beautiful picture of trust? Our lives become twisted together with his and when bound together results in a renewed physical and spiritual strength that only he can provide!

Oh I need the Lord so much, don’t you? I fall so easily. I fail so quickly. I complain so often and so loudly that lies sound like truth. God help me.

I am so thankful for the everlasting-ness of the Lord! He never changes. He wants to fill us with strength and vitality and it’s ours as we wait on him! It is so contrary to the world’s message which tells us the only way to get stronger is to

work not wait

But working in our own strength makes us weaker and drags us farther from God.  Rather than leaning in we are pulled apart, the chord of strength frays.

Stop striving. Stop trying to manipulate things.

Stop fastening yourself to the world’s answers for your problems and start binding yourself to the Lord!

Stop complaining, stop stating that God hasn’t heard you or answered your prayers as if it’s a fact.

Instead, start hoping and waiting on the Lord. Your strength will be renewed.

you will soar on wings like eagles

What does an eagle see as it’s flying high above the earth? Perspective. It can see the bigger picture.

I’ll never forget flying in a small aircraft one day with Kevin over the land of a farmer in our area. From the ground his farm was huge, from the sky it looked so small. It was hardly distinguishable from the other farms around it but that was because the higher we flew the better perspective we had of its size in relation to what was around it.

When you wait on the Lord he changes your perspective. Instead of being suffocated under how huge your circumstances seem, you will see things in a new light and a broader picture will come into focus.

Waiting on him provides us with the power of perspective.

you will run and not grow weary

There were no running clubs and clothing stores dedicated to running enthusiasts back when the Bible was written. Running in the Old Testament often had to do with servants on urgent business for their masters or in times of battle.

How comforting that in our own times of battle or emergencies we don’t have to rely on our own feeble strength! How fitting that we don’t fight alone.

Waiting on him fills us with the power to respond to crisis.

 you will walk and not faint

In ancient times walking was the normal mode of transportation. Daily. For everything from gathering food to drawing water from wells, going to the temple to worship, meeting with people, moving from place to place. They walked. It was tedious and dusty, it was limiting and confining. They didn’t get very far, very fast.

It’s a picture of the daily monotony that sometimes overwhelms us. Life feels pointless, our jobs feel like a dead end, our volunteering doesn’t seem to have an impact.

Waiting on him fills us with the power to persevere.

Wait on him. Put your hope in him alone. He has not forgotten you, he sees your circumstance and his divine power has provided everything you need to live a godly life in Christ Jesus!