Wedding of Kobus Greyling and Bernice de Vries
The bride selected:
Isaiah 42
6 I, Jehovah, have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thy hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles.
The bridegroom selected:
Isaiah 40
27 Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, My way is hid from the Lord, and my judgment is passed over from my God?
28 Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.
29 He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.
30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:
31 But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
Both texts blend into one another. God has called and He has promised His protection. He wants to use both of you (the bridal couple) to be a “light to the Gentiles”
So many Christians try to battle against the storms of life in their own strength. And, fail they must. God has said they will not manage on their own; they will stumble and fall, even if they are young and strong.
In verse 27 God rebukes His people who have forgotten the lessons of Jacob; how God helped him out of impossible situations. In the same way, the Lord Jesus Christ has made the way possible by carrying our burdens, our sins, our problems and He carries us. Let us never forget that.
Waiting upon the Lord has become a foreign thing to Christians who would prefer to manage the storms on their own. But think of this beautiful example of the eagle. When it sees the storm approaching it stays completely relaxed and has no fear. It simply waits for the storm to get closer and closer and it eagerly awaits the challenge. As the storm arrives the hot air is pushed upwards by the storm, and the draughts and thermals hit the spot where the eagle awaits. The eagle simply spreads its wings and the storm winds carries it aloft. It goes higher and higher (without getting into a flap) until it is just a tiny spot high above the storm, almost invisible to the naked eye. It’s riding out the storm. When the storm is gone it goes back to its nest in perfect peace and joy.
So too, with the storms of problems and temptations which we must face in this life. Don’t panic. Wait upon the Lord. He promises to make you “mount up with wings like eagles”.
Think of the servant of Elisha who panicked when he saw that they were surrounded by enemies. Elisha simply prayed that his eyes would be opened. When God gave him a glimse of the mightly army of God in chariots of fire all around it changed the servant’s attitude and heart. Then, God blinded the enemy and Elisha could lead them straight back to Samaria.
This is the God we wait upon! The One in Whom we can trust! The One who “will hold you hand and keep you” and make you to “rise up like the eagle.”