"They shall mount up with wings like eagles," Isaiah 40:31

As spring break draws nearer, the to-do list grows bigger! It's easy to get consumed with how it is it all going to happen! (A friend of mine left a verse on my wall that was really encouraging 1 Chronicles 28:20) One of my favorite passages in the Bible is Isaiah 40:28-31. In verse 31, it talks about mounting up with wings like eagles.


I was reading it today, and the idea of the eagle stuck with me. So I started researching the eagle. Did you know in the Bible, eagles are mentioned 33 times? It has always amazed me how God uses nature to speak with us, so I wanted to find out why the eagle is used so much.


1. Job 9:26 "Like an eagle swooping on its prey."
-Eagles are strong! "A Bald Eagle’s grip is believed to
be about 10 times stronger than the grip of an adult human hand and can exert upwards of 400 psi or pounds per square inch." (from http://www.hawkquest.org/TA/XL/Gripping.pdf)

That is amazing!!! On that same website, it said that the Harpey Bald Eagle’s feet have
enough power to crush large mammal bones! Wow!

-Also, eagles can see four times better than a human with perfect vision! They can see forward and sideways at the same time.





2. Isaiah 40:31 "But those who wait on 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."
-Eagles wings can be 6-to 7 feet wide!




3. Proverbs 30:18-19a: "There are three things which are too wonderful for me, Yes, four which I do not understand: The way of an eagle in the air..."
-The eagle can fly up to 10,000 feet in the air or 1.89 miles in the air!



What I take away from this is how God DESIGNED (not evolved) the eagle this way. He made this bird with its strength, beauty, long wings.... and uses it to teach us. Always keep an eye out in nature for God's lessons. As Romans 1:20 "For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse"


Just the other day at the park, I saw some ants carrying something and I was interested and stopped and watched! I thought it was prey, but the black ants were carrying wood chips back to their ant hill around the edge of the picnic table. They would carry the chip and drop it on the hill and then immediately turn around to search for more wood. What had originally caught my eye was this ant carrying a piece of wood that was three times its body length and two times its body width... He struggled with it over the 'hills' for him, but made it. He did not take a break or complain (at least I didn't hear!)! He went back for more wood. Another lesson, God will not give you more than you can handle (like the ant's wood), and He'll help you carry your burden through the hills (trials!)!


So, God speaks through many ways. Amy Carmichael said that nature is the second Bible! So this week, thank God for His nature... the sun's splendor, the bird's music....



Psalms 103:1a and 4b
Bless the Lord, Oh my soul
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,