The Eagle Has Landed

When I was a young pastor, I hiked alone to the very crest of the Rocky Mountains that overlooked the Flathead Valley in northwest Montana. Jan and I were pastoring a church in the valley below in the city of Kalispell. As I stood atop the rocky ridgeline to my right I could see Flathead Lake and to my left in the distance the Bob Marshall Wilderness. I stood silent and still for several minutes. The view was stunning. As I looked below, I noticed an eagle soaring upward in the air thermals. The eagle continued to rise and finally landed not more than 10 feet from where I stood. He was huge. He landed on the branch of a stunted tree that was struggling to survive in the higher altitudes just above the timberline.

On the flight up to my location the eagle was continually looking down the mountain at something that had gained his attention in the valley below.  Standing still, I made no sound and simply took in the beauty of this magnificent creature. The winds that crossed the ridgeline fluffed the feathers on his back. I could see clearly the white-feathered hood of his head and his yellow beak. The eagle remained perched on the limb for several minutes his gazed fixed on a small lake below. Then in a graceful launch he released himself and floated back down the mountain toward the lake and disappeared.

Today, as I recalled that event, the Lord began to speak to me. He is calling some of you to climb to a higher place of observation. He will join you in that high place to reveal things only visible from that perspective. Critical next steps for individual lives and culture will be revealed to those who are willing to climb higher above the obvious to see what cannot be seen in the valley of natural sight.

In the climb to this higher place you will need to shed the encumbering weight of pride, the restricting limitations of human logic and the controlling nature of fear because the climb cannot be made with these added weights. God is soaring the ridgeline looking for those who have successfully made the climb and now stand waiting and wondering. The Eagle is about to land and He carries a word.

This is a climb you must make alone. Do not wait. There is timing involved. Today’s opportunity may not be present tomorrow. Pack light. Climb strong and you will be positioned to see the Eagle land with fresh revelation.  He will show you what He sees from the vista of His unrestricted vision. Upon your return from the summit you will carry a word that will shift the outcome of your life and the lives of those who have ears to hear.