Strengthen

Isaiah 35:3 AMPC

Strengthen the weak hands and make firm the feeble and tottering knees.

Wow! This verse is very relevant to me right now.

I'm about to totter down to the kitchen to make a brew. Not to be outdone, my nearest and dearest is doing his "scarecrow dance" as he grits his teeth through the pain of a heel spur getting up first thing!

We both seem a bit feeble!🤣.

How easy surrender would be - to give in to infirmity, tiredness and exhaustion... the duvet beckons!

But the Lord calls me to strengthen when I feel weak.

There was also a solemn warning given to the church of Sardis by Jesus Himself in Revelation 3:2:

So wake up, and strengthen what you still have before it dies completely...

Think of trudging through the desert with a lack of food and water. Only the will to survive drives someone on towards an oasis.

This world may feel like a desert at times. Nothing to feed the soul... an endless drudgery of trying to make a living against the odds. What a temptation to succumb to despair and fear.

The verse above is quoted in Hebrews 12:12 with a call to endure and keep going. Like the saying "no pain, no gain" that athletes often recite.

I am called to be a spiritual athlete. The Lord being my spiritual "coach"... urging me on through desert difficulties ... with the promise of good things to come.

Isaiah 41:10 AMPC

Fear not [there is nothing to fear], for I am with you; do not look around you in terror and be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen and harden you to difficulties, yes, I will help you; yes, I will hold you up and retain you with My [victorious] right hand of rightness and justice.

What a way to start the day - be encouraged!