Twisted Together with Christ
July 1, 2023 2023-07-01 8:02Twisted Together with Christ
Revlee Twisted together with Christ.
Isaiah 40:31
31 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. (NIV)
The word ‘hope’ in this passage is better translated into ‘wait.’ And waiting is our occupation in hope. The promise is waiting and hoping increases our strength. The original word means to be ‘twisted together.’
It is important to fully grasp the meaning of this word. To hope for something doesn’t necessarily require any kind of relationship with God. Hope is something that every human being experiences in the absence of something they desire. Hope without God has a limit. At some point, the hope that keeps a person positive will degrade to disappointment and sadness if that desired thing is too long in coming.
To hope in the Lord, however, requires a waiting that twists us together in Him.
Our worship of God is what twists us together with Him. When we worship, we continually remind ourselves of who He is and all that He has done for us. We remind ourselves continually that He is God and we are not. We determine ourselves to trust He knows best so even as we wait, if we don’t receive, we know God’s purpose in our waiting is spiritual growth or He is protecting us from something we can’t see.
Worship is also serving the Lord. To worship God is to exalt Him as God. So, if He is truly God to us, then we do what He asks us to do. To put our hope in the Lord then is continual faithfulness to Him even as we remain without the things we are hoping for. It is to continue in love to God and love our neighbor as ourselves.
When we become frustrated, irritated, or disappointed because we have not received what we desire, we just ceased to wait upon Him. If we cease to love one another with patience and kindness, we stop waiting and hoping in Him. This is worldly hope.
To keep hoping and waiting in Him draws us nearer to Him. We may not have what we desire, but we have more communion with Him. We are twisted together with Him and all that He is. Not only is our strength increased, but all that God is increased in our life. Love, joy, peace, mercy, and wisdom all increase.
Prayer: Lord, help me to put my hope in you that I might be twisted together with you. Amen.
