Isaiah 40:31
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Eagles are very strong birds. Of all birds, none is as outstanding and unique as the Eagle. Eagles are one of a kind. Eagles have many interesting characteristics. For this reason, the Bible likens those who walk with God to the Eagles. In addition, God himself likens himself to an eagle in the Bible (Exodus 19:4). We were made in God’s image and likeness; therefore, God expects us to have the strength and uniqueness of the Eagle.
Isaiah 40:31 tells us that those that wait on the Lord shall renew their strength and mount up with wings as Eagles. To have a full understanding of this scripture, we must study the Eagle and its characteristics. How does the Eagle mount up in flight? How does the Eagle’s flight relate to the Christian life?
Our flight as Eagle Christians all begins with waiting on God. Soaring like Eagles is unachievable if we don’t wait on God.
Waiting On God
Every year, an Eagle spends about 150 days in isolation on the mountains. It spends this period as a time of renewal and rejuvenation. What does the Eagle do in this period?
Firstly, it plucks off all its feathers one by one until all of them fall off. The Eagle does this by hitting itself against the rock gently. Secondly, the Eagle hits its beak on the rock until it breaks away and is left without a beak. The Eagle spends this time without food since its beak is already plucked out.
After this painful process, the Eagle waits in the mountains until it grows new feathers and a beak again. Once this process is complete, the Eagle leaves the mountain with renewed strength and beauty to face another year of life.
Just like the Eagles, we need a renewed strength after a season of intense activities and work. Our way of renewal and rejuvenation is by waiting on God. When we wait before God, he arms us with new strength and we can mount up with wings like Eagles.
What Is Waiting On God?
Waiting on God is a posture of the heart that depends on him for everything. Waiting on God is a posture that acknowledges God as our source and sustainer. It’s a child-like dependence on God. Waiting on God does not necessarily mean that we don’t do anything, it however means that we don’t do anything without God.
Waiting on God is not just prayer or fasting, it is first a heart posture. A heart posture of surrender, dependence, submission and undying trust in him. The moment any iota of pride and self-dependence start to rise in our hearts, we have stopped waiting on God.
Little children always depend on their parents for everything. They do this because they have seen their limitations and recognise that their parents have an ability they do not have. God wants his children to live this way also (Psalm 123:2).
The Cost Of Waiting
We wait on God on his terms, not on our terms. The term waiting shows that we are expecting the arrival of someone or something. If we are waiting on God, it means that we are waiting until he comes. God, however, does not show up just anyhow. He is not found at the surface level; he is found in the depths. That’s why waiting on God requires dedication, commitment, consistency and perseverance (Jeremiah 29:13). Many believers do not sustain the fortitude to wait until God comes. Several times, God shows up at a time people consider late. The strength to wait till this moment is what most believers don’t take care to receive from God.
Waiting on God is not just something that can be done intermittently, it must be done consistently! Many believers don’t take time to prepare their hearts ahead for this waiting process. They just jump ahead and, of course, get worn out easily. The exploits that happen after waiting is a reward for successfully waiting on God. Until the process is completed, we must sustain the posture we have always sustained before God and trust that he will come.
How Do We Wait On God?
This is done when we deliberately take time out to pray, fast, worship and study God’s word. Spending time in God’s presence first starts from when we come into God’s presence at whatever level we are in. In the course of waiting, we get to a crescendo in the spirit realm where we receive God’s strength for the journey of another season. That climax point is when God’s manifest presence and power arrives after successful waiting. There is no specific time frame to hit this threshold point, it could take 1 hour, 2 hours, 3 hours, 4 hours, 30 minutes or even 5 minutes at times. It depends on the situation in the spirit realm and our fervency in prayers. All things being equal however, we do not finish waiting in God’s presence at the same point we started it.
Waiting in God’s presence requires focus, diligence, consistency and utmost concentration. A heart that is unsettled in God’s presence will not achieve any tangible result no matter how many hours spent. (James 1:6-7)
Waiting on God can also be done by being still in his presence (Psalms 46:10). Sometimes, we don’t have to do all the talking we do in the presence of God. There are times we have to be quiet in God’s presence and allow Him to minister to us. Stillness helps us to bring tranquillity to the soul and our whole being. That way, we are sucked out of all the distractions and worries that we have had before and all our focus is on God. In the state of stillness before God, it is much easier for us to feel God’s presence and hear from him.
There is an Eagle in you that longs to fly. Unleash that Eagle by spending time waiting in God’s presence. As you wait, watch yourself mount up with wings as Eagles!
King James Version (KJV)
“But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”
New International Version (NIV)
“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.”
New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
“but those who wait for 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.”
New American Bible (NASB)
“Yet those who wait for the Lord Will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles, They will run and not get tired, They will walk and not become weary.”
English Standard Version (ESV)
“but they who wait for 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.”
The Living Bible (TLB)
“But they that wait upon 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.”