Soaring

Recently, I watched the magic of a bird taking her first flight from the hanging basket on my front porch. (See my earlier post for the full story.) As I observed this precious moment, I must confess it was awkward. In fact, it was more of a forward plunge than a flight. Thankfully, the nosedive ended safely, and my disoriented feathered friend hopped under the leafy shade of a potted fern, where she paused to gather strength before trying again. After a few more less than perfect attempts however, she quickly learned to soar into a beautiful new adventure!

No matter what I’m striving for, I want to step into the next stage with ease. I want to soar without the first strenuous floundering attempts. The lesson, my friend, for me (and maybe you) is ‘short choppy flights are preparation for soaring.’ Practice flights are part of the process. The secret is not to give up.

Every small ungraceful attempt moves us toward the goal.

Did you know the first human flight recorded at Kitty Hawk by Wilbur Wright was only 4 seconds?! The second flight by his brother Orville covered only 120 feet and lasted 12 seconds! Think of the progress, from those first feeble attempts to flight today! We can travel the world! Astronauts have been to the moon!

As we keep moving forward, one day, just like the bird on my front porch, we too will soar high into the adventure God has for us. Philippians 3:13-14 “Brothers and sisters, I do not consider yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

Isaiah 40:31 (KJV) “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.”