This past Sunday afternoon found Matt, Eli, Ryan, Ellie, and I sitting around our dining room table eating lunch. The dining room is close to solid windows that over look the lake (the lake is about 25 walking steps away from the house). About half way through lunch Matt stopped eating and pointed to the air over the water.......
A Bald Eagle was circling the water and then diving towards the water trying to get something. At first we all thought it was a fish because there was nothing visible. As it circled and then swooped down time and time again over the spot we all stopped eating to watch. It soon became clear that it was not a fish the bird was trying to get but instead a duck. The duck would watch the bird's movements- just as it started descending on the water the duck would dive under the water, out of the Eagle's reach. The Eagle was large and powerful- very intimidating..........the duck small- definitely appearing to be the weaker of the two. As this went on, the eagle diving down and clawing at the water and the duck strategically doing everything it could to avoid those eagle's claws, I found myself getting up from the table and walking out onto our deck for a closer look.....It became clear right away that as the duck was diving and hiding from the eagle it was also making it's way quickly to the shore- In the water the duck had the tools of being able to dive deep, deeper than what the eagle could reach- it could also hold it's breath for a long enough period of time that the eagle had to make it's way back up into the sky. On the land there is trees, leaves, logs, and other protection that would help this duck in it's endeavor to save it's life.
The Eagle's attempted attack first appeared to be a hopeless situation for the duck, one that the duck would never be able to survive- Upon further inspection it became clear that the duck was more than equipped to handle this intimidating situation................
How often does life situations threaten to overwhelm us....How often do we feel like the small duck in the water being pursued by the intimidating eagle.........
If you are a breathing human being living with the realities of everyday life my guess is we have all to one extreme or another felt like that duck...........
Already feeling like we are drowning in our own circumstances...we're tired, wore out, done........then we get more devastating news.....the eagle sweeps down just as we pop our head up out of the water to take a big breath.........we're forced back under for another exhausting dive.....JESUS HELP ME!
'In this world you will have trouble' John 16:33 say's... 'BUT TAKE HEART! I have over come the world.'
No matter how hard life seems right now God promises us that we have the tools to endure- The tools to press on- The tools to overcome- the tools to dive once again into the depths of that water and swim for shore..............
Satan wants us to believe that there is no hope- He's that eagle in our life that sweeps down with defeating thoughts.........'You'll never make it through this....'
God has equipped us for just this time- for just this hardship...He has over come the world so that it has no hold on us...the Lord has given us, as Christians, the divine power to demolish the strongholds that satan is trying to use to defeat us...........'daughter you will make it through this...I have given you strength (Phil 4:13) and provided a way for you to endure through this (1 Cor. 10:13)...stand firm daughter... STAND FIRM (Eph 6:13-18).
As the duck waddled up onto shore safe and sound and the eagle gave up it's pursuit I jumped up and down on the deck and gave out a victory cry- Arms raised and voice yelling 'WHOO HOO!!!'
Here's to Victory in Christ Ladies...
Stand Firm :)
May God Bless and Keep you,
Steph
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| my dining room |
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| the view from our dining room |
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