Old Testament
Isaiah 40:29-31
29 He gives power to the weak. He increases the strength of him who has no might.
30 Even the youths faint and get weary, and the young men utterly fall;
31 but those who wait for the LORD will renew their strength. They will mount up with wings like eagles. They will run, and not be weary. They will walk, and not faint.
New Testament
3 John 1:2
2 Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be healthy, even as your soul prospers.
Isaiah asks, almost impatiently: have you not known, have you not heard? The Lord does not faint or grow weary. He gives power to the faint, and to those who have no might he increases strength. The image is not of a superhero’s stamina, but of a God who shares his steadiness with exhausted people.
Well-being is not something we can simply will into existence. Bodies are vulnerable. Minds are tender. Communities can help, or they can harm. Public provision, safe sport, wise healthcare, and gentle companionship all matter.
Then 3 John offers a small pastoral line: a prayer that a beloved friend might go well, and be in health, as his soul goes well. It is not a blank cheque for prosperity, but a tender recognition that spiritual life and physical life are not rivals. God cares for whole people.
Lord, be near to the sick and the anxious, the burnt-out and the ashamed. Give strength to clinicians, carers, counsellors, and all who tend the weary. Teach us to honour limitations without contempt, and to seek health without turning it into an idol. And where we have strength today, help us to use it kindly: not to dominate, but to serve, and to make room for those who are struggling to keep going.