There are moments in time that are etched deeply in our memories. These engravings can bring joy, cause pain, allow reflection, carry regret or envelop us with gratefulness.
The night was cold, with a real bite in the air. My boyfriend…who is now my husband… and I were at a skating rink on a mountain in Montreal. Since we were both about as far removed as one can be from entering the Olympic Games, we frequently found reasons to sit on the benches at the side of the rink. This looked planned… and minimized the risks of falling.
How I loved to talk and dream with my man! We talked about how God brought us together… and what He had planned for our lives.
There… on that cold mountain top… twinkling stars overhead… our words forming misty clouds in the night air… we chose a Bible verse that would be our anchor… a promise that we would often lean on in the coming years.
“Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” Isaiah 40:31
Although all of God’s creation is phenomenal, intricate and awe-inspiring, I have always felt that the eagle is one of His crowning masterpieces. If you and I had the time, I’d tell you to grab a cup of coffee and pull up a chair…’cause I’d want to tell you in detail about the hundreds of life lessons found in the eagle!
But today…. it’s soaring. Soaring on wings. You and I. Just like the eagle.
The older I get, the more often friends or acquaintances will comment to me on how they have watched us come through painful situations. Yes… we’ve experienced real and excruciating pain. Just like most of you. God has, in His sovereign design, allowed us to feel the loss of loved ones, walk through the agony of tragedy and to now watch our sweet daughter suffer from a disease. He continues to walk beside us, assuring us of His comforting Presence and reminding us often that He’s holding us.
However… it’s His strength their seeing. Not ours.
An eagle can sense that a storm is coming, long before it is visible to everyone else. Before the storm arrives, the eagle flies to a higher place. And it waits. Then… when the wind picks up as the storm is building, the eagle flies off, over top of the wind and storm… and using the wind… it soars. The eagle is the only bird that can lock its wings…. so that it can rest while it soars. As all the other creatures are rushing to find cover and survive the storm, the eagle is using the wind to rise to higher heights…. not by its own power… but by the strength of the wind and the Creator’s design.
Whether you’re enjoying a period of smooth sailing or are in the center of a storm… I encourage you to rise to a higher place by spending time in prayer in God’s Presence and reading the Bible …. and then trusting in His power… not yours… spread your wings. Allow Him to take you to heights you’ve never known.
Somedays…. I soar at a much lower altitude. And it’s a bumpy, turbulent ride. I’m white knuckled and panicked. I’ve taken my eyes off of the One Who is all powerful, causing me to lose hope.
Our hope is in the Lord… the One is knows all, designed all, gives us the breath that we breathe, provides us with the strength for each day, loves us infinitely, knows the end from the beginning and is the Alpha and Omega, redeems us, has intentionally forgotten our sins when we trust in Jesus, calls us His children, holds us close when the pain is unbearable, promises to never ever leave us, provides our daily needs, reminds us in His letter, the Bible, that He’s coming back for us…
… and makes us soar.