28 Have you not known?
Have you not heard?
The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.
29 He gives power to the faint, and strengthens the powerless.
30 Even youths will faint and be weary, and the young will fall exhausted;
31 but those who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength,
they shall mount up with wings like eagles,
they shall run and not be weary,
they shall walk and not faint.
– Isaiah 40:28-31, NRSV
His goal was simple: walk laps to raise money. 100 laps around his garden in Bedfordshire, with the hope of raising £1,000 for the British National Health Service. It was the least he could do, after all, since they had cared so well for his health during his cancer treatment and his hip replacement. So there it was: 100 laps for £1,000. If he managed to do that, then he would’ve done his bit in the wake of this pandemic.
Yet in the end, Captain Tom Moore (a 99-year-old World War II veteran) did more than his bit. He overwhelmingly exceeded his goal. Instead of raising £1,000, he raised… over £30,000,000. (He decided to walk a few extra laps for good measure.) It’s amazing what one man can do with a walker and a GoFundMe account.
After raising money and raising spirits, Captain Tom was rewarded with an honorary promotion to colonel and a knighthood. When he turned 100 last month, the public responded with well-wishes in the form of 140,000 birthday cards. For his part, he was flabbergasted by the attention and grateful for the donations. He shares a bit of wisdom for those discouraged or disheartened by the pandemic: “To all those people who are finding it difficult at the moment… the sun will shine on you again, and the clouds will go away.”
You’re an inspiration to us all, Captain Tom. May the Lord renew your strength, again and again. May you run and not be weary. May you walk and not faint.
Walk a few laps around the garden, friends, and remember:
Our God is bigger than coronavirus.
Our vision is bigger than coronavirus, too.
We are people blessing people.
We are Wesley Church.
Blessings,
Pastor Candy
Want to know more?
- Learn about our church and its ministries: https://wesleychurch.com/
- Make a gift to support our mission: https://wesleychurch.com/giving-2/
- View our recent messages: https://wesleychurch.com/sermon-message-on-video/
- View previous devotionals: https://wesleychurch.com/pastor-candys-devotionals-2/
