"It matters a great deal who is going to win, but not at all who won"
Strength and weariness
The Lord gives strength to the weary. Isaiah 40:29In the previous verse Isaiah writes: “The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth”.
The starting point for us must be to know who God is. In a world of uncertainty, the statement that God is everlasting is a great encouragement. I know that my life on earth will end one day but so what? God is everlasting and he has promised that I will live on beyond death. Only an everlasting God can promise that.
Athletes understand weariness. I remember once being invited to watch an elite hurdler train. He was doing a drill. He said to me “I am absolutely exhausted but we are trying to see how may more times I can compete the drill within XX seconds”. It made me exhausted just to watch.
Isaiah says that God “will not grow tired or weary” – imagine that! And it gets better (verse 29) “He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak”.
The next time you are exhausted - in the middle of an impossible repeated drill or other demanding task, just remember the God who never grows weary and is the source of your strength.
The chapter ends with another great promise:” 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”.
I am not sure that runners (and race-walkers) can take this verse literally – as a promise that they will never grow weary! What we can be sure of is that the eternal God will be with you when you are!