Call of the Wild - Lesson 10 - Birds of Prey

Eagles

The female can be one third larger than the male.
A Bald Eagles wingspan is normally 8 feet.
Possession of a feather or other body parts of a bald eagle is a felony
With a fine of up to $10,000 and/or imprisonment,

Once paired, bald eagles remain together until one dies,
The survivor will not hesitate to accept a new mate.
The male does most of the hunting and scavenging
During the early weeks of the chick's life.
The female does the majority of the feeding.

Eagles have eyelids that close during sleep.
For blinking, they also have an inner eyelid called a nictitating membrane.
Every three or four seconds,
The nictitating membrane slides across the eye from front to back,
Wiping dirt and dust from the cornea.
Because the membrane is translucent,
The eagle can see even while it is over the eye.

An eagle's eye is almost as large as a human's,
But its sharpness is at least four times that of a person with perfect vision.
Eagles have great eyesight that helps them see
For one to one and a half miles away.

They can fly at speeds of about 30 to 35 miles per hour in level flight,
And up to 100 miles per hour in a dive.
They fly to altitudes of 10,000 feet or more,
And can soar aloft for hours using natural wind currents.
An eagle's wings are long and broad,
Making them effective for soaring.

To help them soar, eagles use thermals,
Which are rising currents of warm air and updrafts generated by terrain,
Such as valley edges or mountain slopes.
Soaring is accomplished with very little wing flapping,
Enabling them to conserve energy.

Long-distance migration flights are accomplished by climbing high in a thermal,
And then gliding downward to catch the next thermal,
Where the process is repeated.

What are your thoughts on this creature?





God has given us certain skills and abilities.
Do we use those talents properly?
I believe if we don’t use them properly
The Lord will take them away.
Or has every right to.

Proverbs 23:4-5, ‘Labour not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom. Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven.’

Our own wisdom…
Those ideas we have where we have no scripture to back them up.

Can you give me some advice as how I am to cease from thine own wisdom?





As the eyes fly after or seek riches that are worldly in nature,
They either become short-lived or unsatisfying.
We look for happiness and joy in others or things.
We get let down and are disappointed.
We become miserable and critical of others.

What can we learn from these verses?





Proverbs 3:5, ‘Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.’

All means all.
Once again our own understanding or our own wisdom.

We get false notions built up.
Either from our upbringing.
Or a misinterpretation of scripture.
Or we just make it up to suit our needs.

Once again can you give us some advice as to trusting in the Lord
As opposed to our understanding or as it should probably say our own nonsense?





Isaiah 40:28, ‘Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.’

We question God.
We know we shouldn’t but we do.
Even if we don’t out loud, I believe we do at times in our heart.

Do you have any advice as how we can doubt Him less and trust him sooner?





Isaiah 40:29, ‘He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.’

Depression in God's service is sinful and irrational,
He is both able and ready to grant us any measure of strength and wisdom
That is necessary.

What can you share with us here?





Isaiah 40:30, ‘Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:’

They who trust in their own virtue,
and do not acknowledge that all comes from God.

We try to do a little too much ourselves…
Can you share anything here?





Isaiah 40:31, ‘But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.’

‘… mount up with wings as eagles; …’
We reviewed in the beginning that eagles ride thermal currents.
They aren’t flapping like a humming bird.

Who’s strength are we flying on?
Who’s strength are we running on?





Job 39:26-30, ‘Doth the hawk fly by thy wisdom, and stretch her wings toward the south? Doth the eagle mount up at thy command, and make her nest on high? She dwelleth and abideth on the rock, upon the crag of the rock, and the strong place. From thence she seeketh the prey, and her eyes behold afar off. Her young ones also suck up blood: and where the slain are, there is she.’

The eagle is said to have such heightened sight.
that when she is so high in the air that men cannot see her,
she can discern a small fish in the water!

How good is our vision as to seeing the things of the Lord?





Job 9:25-26, ‘Now my days are swifter than a post: they flee away, they see no good. They are passed away as the swift ships: as the eagle that hasteth to the prey.’

What will we say of our life in our last days?

What might others say of us when we have passed?





Closing thoughts …

What have we learned from the birds of prey?

They mate for life – they are loyal …
They can blink with their eyes still opened – they are always alert …
They soar at tremendous heights and dive at tremendous speeds. …

They soar with very little flapping
As they ride the thermal currents their Maker provides.

Do we use our God given talents properly?
Do we doubt His provision?
Do we trust in our own strength too much?

Let’s soar to new heights on his strength …
Let’s train our eyes to see what He is showing us …
Let’s get rid of the silly notions that
the Lords previous blessings to us are because of our efforts …

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