Isaiah 40:31 — 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.

I heard somebody say this yesterday. First it saddened me … and then it resonated. It seems to me to reflect the state of so many Christians — me included. And it reminded me of this so well-known and much-loved verse.
Did you see the great documentary on the life of ducks? Baby ducks start very bravely — hurling themselves into life. But they cant’t fly. First they can walk, then swim a little. Eventually they learn to fly. Take to the air … a few hops … and, at last, they fly. They fly, but for most of them for a very long time it’s hard work. They fly, but they do not soar. But they get the job done. When the time comes, they can fly great distances.
I can’t help feeling that my Christian life has been that way too. In fact it’s not just “failure to soar”! Sometimes it’s a real slog. Paul writes about it in 2 Corinthians 4 (verses 8,9 and 16):

We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.

Being a Christian is hard work wouldn’t you say? Not the every day, being a decent person, reading the Bible, praying, quiet time … But the real nitty gritty. When work gets tough, when people are mean, when you are misunderstood — the constant daily struggle to live to a higher standard than comes “naturally”. Still, there seems to be just enough strength each day.
So how do us ducks get to soar? Isaiah makes it clear. We must wait on The Lord. He’s repeating what he has already reported God as saying:

For thus saith The Lord, the Holy One of Israel; In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength: and ye would not.

Return and rest in The Lord. in HIS quietness and confidence. Later in 2 Corinthians, Paul says “And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9)
Us ducks can only be like eagles when we are ready to stop working so hard at it, and admit that we’ll probably never get to soar in our own power. Even eagles don’t soar under their own power. They have to get themselves into the right place, and trust to the wind.
I said the other day that I want the trusting demanded in Proverbs 3:5-6 to be a greater part of my life next year. I’m going to try to wait on The Lord, and let Him raise me up!