Give me your eyes for just one second,
Give me your eyes so I can see
Everything that I’ve been missing
Give me your love for humanity
Brandon Heath
I was having a good early evening fish time. I could see the fish playing in the current, sometimes swimming right by me if I stayed still. Then he swooped in. It was an eagle on the hunt. He came in low over the water, not even moving a wing. Eyes focused on the water, Talons flexed, he stabbed at the water and came up with a nice sized small mouth bass! He then immediately looked up to me, now only 50 feet away. He came straight at me, then cut right into the trees to enjoy his dinner.
The perspective the eagle had with high altitude surveillance that allowed it to see so much more than I was seeing on the surface.
An eagle eye is 8 times stronger than our eyes, able to spot a rabbit from 2 miles away. While we boast of our 180 degree visual field, and eagle can almost double that ability to 340 degrees. An eagle has a good handle on his surroundings, and is always more comfortable flying high
When an eagle approaches a storm, they don’t fly for cover. They actually ride the thermals up over the storm, sometimes so high their wings will freeze. When they reach the top, ride the thermals down the other side, and keep going. Their response to a storm? Just fly up and over it!
When I see a storm coming, I am partly mesmerized by the power, and partly afraid of the potenital. If you have been through a bad storm, then you know what I mean. All I can see are the clouds, the wind, the sound of limbs straining, and trash cans cart wheeling down the street. From my perspective, the storm is all I see. Some of life’s storms have raged for months in my and your life. We see a small bit of sunlight, then it is snatched away by another financial crisis, or illness, or family emergency, or some other wind of change and destruction.
The disciples never saw what hit them. One moment it was clear and sunny, the next there were high wind and high waves. All of their years of lake fishing were dissolved by this one raging storm. They traded their long fishing experience in for abject fear and anxiety. Now Jesus was with them on this trip, but he was asleep in the hull. He may have have slept through it if the disciples hadn’t cried out to him for help. All they could see was high winds, big waves, and sure death. Jesus’ perspective as God gave him a different view on things. He got up, and with one word the storm ceased. The disciples were relieved, but still didn’t understand who was among them. Jesus’ view was always above the fray, the crowd, the weather, the culture. He had an eagle eye view of life. The disciples were stuck in their immediate view of life, rather one dimensional in some ways. They were still learning to gain an eagles eye view of life.
The closest I get to this view is when I fly. You get a totally new perspective on your surroundings when you fly.I can see from one end of the state to another when the sky is clear. Every topographic detail is laid out for me to marvel at. Driving on the road, I snake through every little town, and every curving road. My perspective is only what I see in front of me, not even what’s around the corner. My eye in the sky perspective while flying gives me patience when I’m grounded, stuck behind a seasoned citizen (my immediate future) or a horse and buggy here in Lancaster county. Having seen where I am going from above, I can relax and know what is coming, even if all I see for now is the back end of an amish buggy!
God desires for us to gain an eagle eye perspective as we look to his word, spend time with him in prayer, worship, and meditation on a regular basis. By meditation, I don’t mean getting out the prayer mat, loosening the tie, and, with legs crossed uncomfortably, delving into mindless thought. The greek word for meditate infers the action cows take when they ruminate. Cows take food into the first stomach, the the second, then back to the first stomach. this action exposes the food source to several different enzymes, making digestion easier. It also makes the eating process a lot slower, which is my point with meditation. To meditate is to take one truth, and roll it around in your mind, heart, and soul for a focused moment in time. Try to see this one truth from many angles, allowing God to communicate intricacies you would not see if just reading the words. This means you have to slow down, disconnect from the frantic pace of your life, and listen, really listen, to God.
I often fail miserably at this process, because I tend to be most comfortable slogging through the currents of life, catching whatever I can see, while dodging rocks, sticks, and mud holes. To have eagle eyes means I have to get out of my every day rhythm, sit down on the bank, and engage at a higher level of thought, prayer, and perspective. Spending one day at the beach, or an afternoon at Paneras, or a hiking along a favorite path all allow for the eagle eye view to happened for you.
What is the goal when we enter this slow paced, laser focused spiritual time?
There is none! This is a time to listen, read the bible or a good book, being ready to write down what you hear in your head.( journalling here) this is not a problem solving session, or goal setting experience. Those times are needed in your life, but not here. This is a time to soar above your situation, leave behind the minute by minute minutia, and seek a higher perspective of your life, your calling, and your source of strength.
PART TWO ON THE WAY!
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