My photo: Eagle on a post at Jasper Park Lodge, Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada

“Remember…how I carried you on eagles wings…” (Exodus 19:4)

“…Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength, they will soar on wings as eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” (Isaiah 40:31, NIV)

How would you respond if you are faced with a challenging situation or emergency? During my high school years, I had to take swimming lessons in the school pool. In those first classes, I had a debilitating fear of deep water. My response was to frantically wave my arms, swallow water and make no real progress! In real life, many of us seem to respond to our problems like my own knee-jerk reaction, trying to win or just survive by our own puny efforts. The result is often frequent failure leading to wasted time and a wasted life. It was only when I learned to relax and “rest” in the water that water became my friend and buoyed me up. Ultimately, I leaned not only to float but to swim.

Think of the eagle. Unlike some birds, the eagle does not flap his wings once up in the air. He has massive wings that are designed to catch the warm air currents that rise from the earth features that are warmed by the sun. Of course, hot air rises, and the eagle catches these bursts of air currents called thermals and takes advantage of the columns of rising air or updrafts -enabling it to rest on and be carried forward by these currents. As Robert Morgan says in his book, The Strength You Need,eagles “know how to find these thermals…stretch out their wings and catch the updraft. They don’t frantically flap their wings; they simply stretch them out and catch the updrafts of God’s thermals.” (p.97)

This is crucial in the spiritual life. God wants us to rest in Him and His promises. Instead of getting stressed out or acting frantic in our life responses, we can experience real calm and inner peace when we trust Him fully by complete faith on Him and in Him. He will carry us through to complete peace and victory as He did with the Israelites. Eagles have been known to teach their young eaglets to fly by first carrying them on their huge wings and then catch them when help is necessary. As the verse above indicates, the Lord is ready to carry us on His “wings” as it were, until we are ready to let go and trust Him – empowering us in soaring to new levels of service for God. Faith in the Lord and faithfulness to Him will enable us to mount up with His divine wings like eagles. Then, we can live victoriously in daily life as we are lifted and buoyed by spiritual updrafts through God’s written word and the living Word, Jesus Himself!  

• Next Steps:
• Saturate your mind with the Bible – God’s written word. Then, let His holy word lead you into a deeper more intimate relationship with Jesus!
• Meditate on the complete verse of Exodus 19:4 for motivation in seeking and finding God’s spiritual updraft for you today. Please note why God wants to lift you up as an eagle lifts its young to fly. In Jesus, you can soar higher now as a heavenly citizen while still living in your earthly location (Philippians 3:20).