I want to soar!

There's a video that's been going around on Facebook--maybe you've seen it? It's some guys jumping off cliffs in Norway, wearing wingsuits and flying through the air. I've watched it over and over and over again and I get the queerest feeling inside. I long to soar. I'm hungry to soar. I don't want to limited by gravity or weighed down by baggage. I want to fly.

If you haven't seen it, you can check it out here:

wingsuit base jumping from Ali on Vimeo.

It makes me think of some of the first verses I ever memorized:

"Have you never heard? Have you never understood? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of his understanding. He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless. Even youths will become weak and tired, and young men will fall in exhaustion. But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint." Isaiah 40:28-31

If that verse has a "same old, same old" familiarity to you, try reading it again. Out loud. Perhaps really loudly like you're cheering someone on who's strength is failing. Not so "same old," is it?

Have you heard? Maybe you've heard but didn't understand? The Lord is so great and powerful that He was able to create the universe! He never grows weak or tired! There's no limit to His understanding! He gives power and strength to--whom? To the powerless. Are you feeling powerless in a situation? Without strength or understanding? Trust Him.

What does trust look like? You could get a different analogy from every person you ask, each one as unique as the individual. (I'd love it if you posted a comment telling me what it looks like to you.) It can be that calm and peaceful quality of a baby sleeping through a storm. I think it can also be like a warrior that won't back down because he knows Who's side he's on.

In any case, those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. It's a promise. Trust Him. Declare your confidence in Him by praising Him when there are no "obvious" reasons to rejoice. Your strength will be renewed so much that you will be able to put one foot in front of the other even when "young men will fall in exhaustion". Were you expecting me to put the "soaring" part in there? I'd like to and you can! I love those soaring moments, in fact, I tend to be hard on myself and feel like a failure when I'm not soaring. Why is that? Why is it so hard to recognize that it's a miracle of God's supernatural intervention when we can "walk and not faint" or "run and not grow weary" at times when it would be normal to become "weak and tired and...fall in exhaustion"? I want to encourage myself and you to be really excited and to praise God for his strength and power that enables us not quit, but to keep on walking, running and soaring.

Like the men in this video, most of my soaring times have been after a leap of faith. Some leaps are huge, like when you move across the country or take a new job. Some of them are perhaps less dramatic, but feel huge in the moment when you take a deep breath and share your faith or give a word of encouragement when you weren't sure how it would be received. But what a rush!!

Trust. Leap. Soar!!