March 24 Day 16
Isaiah 40:29-31
“He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; 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.”
REFLECTION
Leo Tolstoy told a story about a boat, some oars, a river, and a far shore. A man begins rowing for the far side but finds himself surrounded by other boats that are simply floating downstream…and he starts doing the same. By the time he hears the sound of the rapids that will be his destruction, it is almost too late. He remembers his oars and his original destination and begins pulling strenuously for the safety of the other side.
The oars represented God’s gift of free will, that could be used to gain the far shore, which was God’s kingdom. The current swept the ignorant and the uncaring to their doom. Jesus teaches us that we too must choose the narrow path of salvation…and that many will never escape destruction. Tolstoy summarized his tale this way: “Live seeking God, and then you will not live without God.”
PRAYER: Lord, set our hands to the oars and our eyes on you alone. Give us the strength to continue on when we tire and are tempted by the ways of the world to give up our pursuit of your righteousness. When we grow faint, renew us and turn us back to you alone so we can one day arrive on your shore and enter into your kingdom. AMEN
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