RISE UP
17th Aug 2016
Last weekend the annual Bristol Balloon Fiesta was the must see event. There is something wonderful about watching a hot air balloon go up into the sky, simply rising on hot air, and being at the mercy of the wind.
The hot air burners filling the balloon look simple, but it almost seems to be an impossibility to lift all the weight of the people in the basket up into the air; but it does and they soar effortlessly into the sky.
I love Isaiah 40:30-31 which says, “Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who wait upon 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 thought that the Isaiah scripture said “Rise up with wings as eagles” but couldn’t find a translation that agreed with me! However, I do believe that it is time for us to “Rise up” in every area of life. If we want to “soar on wings like eagles” we need to give time to “wait upon the Lord.”
For us, we have been given the breath of the Holy Spirit to lift us above life’s circumstances which seek to cause us to feel flat, deflated and defeated. Romans 8:11 says, “And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.” This is a powerful promise and we need to live in the good of it day by day. It promises physical strength as well as spiritual.
In Acts 3:6 Peter says to the crippled man, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.”
This is not a time to lie down defeated, but to “Rise Up” and live in victory!
by Charles Sibthorpe
