“They will soar on wings like eagles!” When we experience difficult times or trouble we tend to complain, because it seems the most natural thing in our nature to do.
Depending on what we are experiencing and the specific circumstances we will either direct our complaints towards something or someone. After all, trials or difficulties can often appear to make us feel like the way forward is unknowable or hidden from our sight. This can make circumstances hard to navigate through and make it hard to decide as to what is the best course of action to resolve the dilemma we are facing in life. It may be something like not knowing how to finish a difficult assessment, or more significant like losing our job, a business falling on hard times, our health or even feeling displaced.
God’s people experienced first-hand being displaced when they were exiled to Babylon. Although these circumstances were attributed to their sin, still their experience caused them to accuse God to be uninterested in their way and cause in life. We can also feel that God doesn’t care about what happens to us, and therefore, like Israel we can be tempted to doubt God’s just ways. Why? Because he did not fix the situation or make things all good according to how we perceive it. In the case of the remnant people who were left to walk until God restored them like he promised it was easy to grow tired and weary of waiting for God’s promise to come.
Our experiences matter to us, and we dare not trivialise them or underestimate the profound impact they have on life, plans and future goals. Depending how we complain and what we say matters, especially when it comes to God and forgetting who he is. You might be thinking well, that’s fine if we are flourishing in life but how does this help me when I am fading like a flower? This is the great comfort of our eternal hope that despite what comes in life we have heard our God is everlasting. Unlike us who fade and wither, he never will.
God’s Word reminds us that everything does matter to him and that he does not forget, get tired nor grow weary like us. The Prophet Isaiah in his sermon to comfort God’s people in the hopelessness of walking through exile that the LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth (Isa 40:28-31). The promise is through our journey he will supply his strength and power to grow, run, walk and though falls and stumbles may happen he renews our strength to continue until the end. The wonderful depiction of God’s word is of God carrying us on wings like eagles. A majestic sight indeed, yet no mere picture alone but one which captures our God’s work now until we land safely in our eternal home.
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他們必如鷹展翅上騰！當我們經歷困難或患難的時候，我們往往會抱怨，因為這似乎是我們本性中最自然的反應。
取決於我們所經歷的事情和具體的處境，我們往往會把抱怨指向某件事或某個人。畢竟，試煉與困難常常讓我們覺得前路渺茫、難以看清。這樣的情況會使我們難以在困境中前行，也難以判斷如何作出最合適的決定來解決人生中所面對的難題。這可能是像不知道如何完成一個困難的作業那樣的小事，也可能是更重大的事情——例如失去工作、事業陷入困境、健康出現問題，甚至感到自己流離失所。
神的子民曾親身經歷被擄到巴比倫而流離失所的痛苦。雖然這些遭遇是因他們的罪所致，但這段經歷仍使他們抱怨神，認為神對他們的道路與人生無動於衷。換句話說，他們感到神並不關心他們所遭遇的一切，因此，就像以色列人一樣，我們也可能受到誘惑而懷疑神的公義。為什麼呢？因為神沒有按照我們的觀點立即解決問題或使一切變得完美。對於那餘剩的百姓而言，對於那些被留下來等待神按祂的應許復興他們的餘民來說，等待神的應許成就的過程中，很容易變得麻木和疲倦 。
但我們所經歷的一切對我們都很重要，我們絕不能輕視它們，也不能低估它們對人生、計劃和未來目標所帶來的深遠影響。然而，我們抱怨的方式和所說的話是至關重要，尤其是當這關乎神，以及我們是否忘記了祂是誰的時候。你可能會想：「好吧，如果我們人生順利，這沒問題，但當我如花凋零時，這又有什麼幫助呢？」這正是我們有永恆盼望的極大安慰：無論人生遭遇什麼，我們都知道神是永恆的。與我們不同，我們會凋零枯萎，但祂永不衰敗。
神的話提醒我們，一切對祂都很重要，祂不會忘記，也不會像我們一樣疲倦或厭倦。先知以賽亞在安慰被擄的神子民時宣告，耶和華是永恆的神，是地極的創造者（以賽亞書 40:28-31）。祂的應許告訴我們，無論旅程多麼艱難，神都會賜給我們力量和能力，使我們能夠成長、奔跑、行走；即使跌倒或絆倒，祂也會更新我們的力量，使我們堅持到最後。
神的話語最精彩的描述是，神像鷹一樣帶著我們展翅高飛。這的確是一幅雄偉的景象，但這不僅僅是一幅圖畫，而是捕捉了神從今時直到我們安全抵達永恆家園的作為。
Rev. Adam Breasley
