Stand, Sing, and Soar

By Glen Elliott   “I waited patiently for the Lord; and He inclined to me and heard my cry. He brought me out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay, and He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God; many will see and fear and will trust in the Lord” (Psalm 40:1-3).     Anyone who has slipped and fallen knows the value of standing on solid ground. One of the great promises of trusting God is that He will “set [our] feet upon a rock making [our] footsteps firm” (Psa. 40:2). With feet firmly planted, those who trust in the Lord have something to sing about -- a new song -- a song of praise to God -- a song capturing the attention of others who will, in turn, place their trust in the Lord as well (vs. 3).     A bird seems happiest when singing from its perch. I have never witnessed such a bird fall from its perch. I have, however, seen them, in midflight, crash into a window. The point is this: we are happiest when we make the Lord our trust (vs. 4) -- when we stand on the solid rock and sing His praises. But, when we leave our perch of safety, an inevitable crash will soon befall us.     Jeremiah rightly argued that it is not within us “to direct [our] own steps” (Jer. 10:23). We stand, but not without direction. We “walk by faith not by sight…” (2 Cor. 5:7). Taking up the armor of God, we must do “everything to stand firm” (Eph. 6:13). But, in standing firm, we move forward following Christ by standing strong on His teachings. There is a sequence to spiritual flight: stand, sing, and soar. None of this is possible without making the Lord our trust. “Yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary” (Isa. 40:31).

- Glen Elliott preaches for the Greenbrier church of Christ in Greenbrier, AR. He may be contacted through the congregation's website - https://www.gbcofc.com/