Deuteronomy 32:11 “Like an eagle who rouses her chicks and hovers over her young, so He spreads His wings to take them up and carry them safely on His pinions.”
I love when the Lord uses His creation to give us a glimpse of who He is. Our conference in Colorado this year was focused on eagle wings. God uses the eagle to describe how He cares for us. He reminds us that God is our shelter, a refuge from the storms of life. The picture of this was presented to us on Saturday when we had the privilege of seeing a real bald headed eagle center stage. His very presence was beautiful. To see this creature so close, you come to understand God’s reason for using this amazing creature as an example of His love and protection. This eagle was majestic in his stature. What was even more moving was when he opened his wings for all of us to witness. The sound that came out of each mom was the sound of pure amazement. This bird, who only weighed thirteen pounds, had a wing span of six to seven feet. He carried on his thirteen pound body around 7200 feathers. His feathers are strong and flexible. Each of those feathers plays an important part of the flight and protection of the eagle.
The bald eagle has amazing eye sight. He has the ability to search for prey from one and a half miles up in the air. From that vantage point, the eagle can survey an area of some four and a half square miles. A bald eagle can spot prey the size of a rabbit three miles away! He will then fold his wings and dive down to snatch his prey. Like the eagle, the Lord will search to and fro for anything or anyone who wants to destroy us. He is able to protect us from our enemies even when we are unable to protect ourselves. The Bible tells us He will cover us with His feathers. He will shelter us with His wings. His faithful promises are our armor and protection. A great bald eagle can fly across a 2 mile lake in less than one minute. The average speed of that eagle is 120 miles per hour. When we are covered under His wings, the Lord’s swiftness to answer our call for help in our dark times can give our mind, body, and soul relief. Especially when we are in the darkness of grief.
Under the Lord’s feathers is where we find our strength. We are also able to adjust to whatever life throws at us knowing we are protected with the Lord’s covering. The base of the shaft of the feather is where the softer down of the feather is found. That is where the baby chick finds warmth and comfort. Under His wings, the Lord comforts us and surrounds us with His warm love. The most amazing thing about eagles is that they have the ability to fly in a hurricane. What storms we often find ourselves in. Some storms are caused by others in our lives, some by our own bad choices, and some just because of a fallen world. The Lord doesn’t look at why we are in the storm. It is because of His love and grace for us that He calls us under the safety of His feathers. There we can find rest and stillness. There He will give power to the weak and strength to the powerless. He allows us to stay under His pinions as long as we need. In time He will gently encourage us into flight. When we trust in Him and gain strength we can come out from under His wings and we can soar high on eagle wings to a new beginning.
Lord, what beautiful life lessons we can learn from Your creation.
– Michele
