Strength for the Waiting
Let us linger a little longer with the disciples in that post-Easter Upper Room. The tomb is empty, Jesus has appeared and disappeared, hope has been rekindled — and yet still they wait. They do not yet know what will come next. All they have is a promise and a command: “Stay here.”
Waiting, as we know, is rarely easy. Minds wander, impatience raises its disturbing head, and boredom can lead us into impulsive and often unwise decisions. Waiting exposes us — our anxieties, our need to be in control, our discomfort with uncertainty. The disciples would have known all of this. Fear still hovered in the room, questions remained unanswered, and the future felt fragile.
Into this experience speaks the well-loved promise of Isaiah 40:31:
“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.”
This is not a promise that waiting will be painless, but that it will be purposeful. The image of the eagle is striking. Eagles do not flap endlessly to stay airborne; they wait for the rising thermal currents and allow themselves to be lifted. Isaiah reminds us that waiting on the Lord is not passive inactivity but active trust — a leaning of the whole self into God’s faithfulness.
To “wait on the Lord” is to place our hope, patience, and reliance in God — not just with our circumstances, but with our souls. It is choosing prayer over panic, obedience over shortcuts, trust over control. For the disciples, this post-Easter waiting became a time of recovery, renewal, and restoration. In the stillness of that Upper Room, God was preparing them for Pentecost power.
The challenge for us is this: where are we being asked to wait? Rather than rushing ahead or filling the silence, can we allow God to renew our strength? Can we trust that God is at work even when nothing seems to be happening?
Prayer
Faithful God,
we confess that we find waiting hard.
In our impatience, teach us trust;
in our weariness, renew our strength.
Lift us on wings like eagles,
that in your time we may run, walk, and serve
without growing faint.
As we wait upon you, prepare our hearts
for all that you are yet to do.
Amen.
