2024 Fasting Devotional

“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”

Isaiah 40:31

We (Monica and Marlin) wanted to share a few thoughts with you as we come to the beginning of this year’s fast.  What a journey this will be, sitting at the feet of Jesus each day and listening to the ‘sacred whispers’ of the Holy Spirit as He speaks His peace and hope to our hearts.  We will cry, laugh, and learn together as we embark upon this amazing journey of spiritual awakening and discovery.  In this fast, we are dreaming bigger DREAMS and stepping into all that God has called each one of us to.  We are challenging the old habits of our past, and finding new paths to walk in.  For many of us, the old patterns of limiting mindsets and beliefs will slowly waste away, and the dawning of our highest and best selves will awaken.

Even though we are thrilled to see this growth and new determination, we are sober-minded enough to remind you that nothing happens overnight.  On this journey of growth, we all will have to learn the value of patience and wait.

We know we speak for just about everyone when we say, ‘we do not like that word’: wait.  It is so indefinite.  It doesn’t inspire hope. It doesn’t ease fears. It’s like coming to a new chapter in your life only to discover that there was no closure to the last one.  And now you simply have to sit in silence and wait.  While we wait, our minds are racing from one worry to another, and soon anxiety begins to sit on the throne of our hearts.  Morning turns into evening, and still, our circumstances have not yet changed.  So many people started out on their journey well, but the ‘weight of waiting’ proved to be too much, and they stopped believing just seconds from their goal.

I (Marlin) know that the weight of waiting has threatened me to not finish my race many days.  God will often give me large, bodacious dreams, and right as my heart begins to swell with hope, He quietly tells me to wait.  I enter a waiting season, and how lonely that season is!  Those self-defeating demons of doubt and despair have often come to wrestle away my faith, and the ‘weight of the wait’ soon begins to make my heart heavy.  All I have the strength to do in those moments is point my faith towards God and then lean totally upon Him. 

I (Monica), too, have waited, while struggling to hold on to my faith in the process.  Trusting God for every second or day of my wait.  Often tears have been my companion, and prayer has been my constant pastime while I have waited.  But I can truly say that I have learned more about trusting God while I am in the ‘wait’ than I ever could outside of it.

Our hope is that you realize that you are not by yourself.  We both have had seasons of waiting.  But oh, there is great news that we have to share!  If you are willing to wait and not lose heart, God always shows up just before the darkest hour of the night.  He will not come empty-handed to you in your season of waiting.  He comes to fulfill His promise in Isaiah 40:31, “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”.  Here the promise is that God will renew your strength.  This means that ‘waiting’ can often be ‘weakening’.  When prayers go unanswered, the temptation to give up the faith becomes stronger with each passing moment. 

When I (Monica) am waiting, I realize that I am also growing.  Waiting is not the absence of activity; it is actually the presence of growth.  Things naturally grow while they wait.  I love the plants that we have around our home.  They give life and freshness to our living environment.  I water them regularly and move them from shade to sunlight to keep them healthy.  But there is something I never do.  I never sit down beside them to watch them grow.  If I were to do that, I would soon come to believe that they are not growing.  No, I simply water them, love them, and let them grow on their own.  I don’t need to check, because I know that healthy things grow if you just give it enough time.  The same is true in your life and in mine.  It won’t be overnight, but healthy things always grow while we wait. 

I (Marlin) find it strange that God would tell us that the way to renew your strength while you are waiting, is to continue to wait.  Isn’t ‘waiting’ the thing that has been taking our strength away in the first place?  Well, actually, this passage doesn’t say we get our strength renewed simply by waiting. It says we get our strength renewed by ‘waiting on the Lord!’.  You see, the expectation of our waiting has to shift from the earthly to the heavenly.  We have to shift our focus, in order to find our strength.  The blessing in the waiting is not in the thing you ultimately hope will fill your hand, but it is in the One you ultimately trust to fill your heart.  The text compares the man who waits on the Lord to an eagle who soars in the sky while the wind rages against him. He gets stronger as he climbs higher.  This is what God says will be our experience, if we can shift our focus from waiting on things, to waiting on Him.

While you are in your season of waiting, I (Monica) would love to share with you a few things I have learned when I’ve gone through those seasons in my own life.

• Worship While You Wait. - Every morning, spend time listening to the worship songs in the ‘Sacred Whispers Playlist’ even after our fast has ended.  Etch out a few quiet minutes of your day to simply listen to God as He speaks to you.  You’ll be amazed at how God can use a song to break through to your heart like you never imagined.

• Work While You Wait. - Do not become idle while you are waiting on God.  Satan loves to fill our minds with hopelessness when we are not engaged in productive work.  Serve on a ministry, volunteer through our Community Center and serve others who are hurting, or maybe mentor a young person in need. Whatever you do, don’t become dormant.  Working is the way you get past the waiting.

• Wonder While You Wait. - If you can fill your thoughts with the goodness, and love of God, you will find the burden of waiting becoming lighter.  Remember God’s work in your life from years ago, and before you realize it, your faith will grow, and the wait will become easier to bear.

Now that you know how to wait, we (Marlin and Monica) are praying that you will find the courage to pray bold prayers and be willing to trust God as you wait for Him to answer them. Great things never come easy, and they will always require waiting.  Waiting is a temporary season, it will not last forever.  Cast the weight of your waiting upon the Lord and allow Him to lighten your load.  Let’s make this a sweet season of worship, work and wonder, and watch God cause our hearts to be overrun with joy.  While we wait, we will learn to dance!

PRAYER

Father, I acknowledge that I am often impatient waiting on You, please forgive me. I know that you are sovereign and know what’s best for me. Forgive me for only looking through my physical eyes and not my spiritual eyes. Thank You for being patient with me and lovingly guiding me to your truths. Help me daily to trust You more in all things. Thank You for being my constant Everything. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINE

Worship. Work. And Wonder!