Longevity In Life/Ministry

I have been studying the book of Isaiah this month and I was stirred with hope this morning when read I Isaiah 40:28-31 which says,

 "Do you not know?  Have you not heard?  The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the whole earth.  He never grows faint or weary; there is no limit to His understanding.  He gives strength to the weary and strengthens the powerless.  Youths may grow faint and grow weary, and young men stumble and fall, but those who 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 faint."

This portion of scripture really speaks to me because our family is about to launch full force into a church plant in the Hampton Roads area in September of 2012.  Understanding how to navigate large undertakings I believe is essential.  Here is what I took from the above passage:

• God is sovereign, all powerful, all knowing, everything began with Him and ALL IS HIS, He has always been and always will be, He is the one that has NO LIMITS
• He loves giving, it is part of His nature...it says, "...He gives strength to the weary and strengthens the powerless"
• Everything else may and WILL fail without Him
• TRUST is the key:
• I see trust as a massive ingredient to accessing what God has for us.  When you are constantly fearful or anxious it can be traced back to a lack of trust.
• Stress is also another side effect of a lack of trust
• Making a decision to trust puts God in His rightful place, a place where He can be who He is...GOD
• Making a decision to trust puts us in our rightful place to receive from God, a place of genuine HUMILITY....it is a place that is out of our control or selfish manipulation
• The Promise:
• If we can make the decision to trust we get the reward of that decision!  We will soar on wings like eagles; we will run and not grow weary; we will walk and not faint.
• Ever seen an eagle soar?  It is effortless.  The ability to soar does not come from them, they are accessing something they have found.  God also promises the ability to run and not get tired, the ability to walk out everything He has for us and not faint (not burn out)  in the process

Conclusion:

If we can learn to be intentional and make the decision daily to truly trust, we will access the promise to do things with a Sovereign God involved.  That means not just this vague faith that we have help but you have A WRITTEN PROMISE from the One who spoke the earth into existence.  He is not a liar and if He said we will get these things if we trust, you can bet IT WILL HAPPEN.  He will give you the ability to do things that others may not be able to do and to do them in an effortless way.  The ability to soar instead of constantly flapping your wings trying to stay in flight.  He will give you the gift of longevity!  The ability to run and NOT GET TIRED.  Jesus said in Matthew 11:30, "My yoke is EASY and My burden is LIGHT".  If we are feeling anything other than that we have carried too much of God's responsibilities.  Let Him be God, and let us remain submitted and sold out to one of the greatest keys to victory ever, TRUST.

Joel