The Danger Of Lodging In The Wilderness

2 Sam. 17

16 "Now therefore, send quickly and tell David, saying, ’Do not spend this night in the plains of the wilderness, but speedily cross over, lest the king and all the people who are with him be swallowed up.’"

22 So David and all the people who were with him arose and crossed over the Jordan. By morning light not one of them was left who had not gone over the Jordan.

Is. 40

31 But those who wait on the LORD Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.

Some of us here this morning need to mount up with wings as eagles and get out of the wilderness we are in.

When Jesus spoke to the children of Israel He said He brought them out of Egypt on eagle’s wings.

Eagles are mentioned in the bible 32 times.

All through the scripture you will see God was partial to the eagle.

He made the eagle like no other bird.

No other bird on the face of the earth has the strength or power of the eagle.

Scientist say that of flesh, bone and blood, there is nothing on the face of this earth as strong as an eagle.

A 22-pound eagle has been known to carry a 100-pound kangaroo over 1 mile.

They come from a family called falcons, which consist of condors, hawks, and eagles.

Even in his own family, the eagle distinguishes himself from all the others because he has a different kind of heart.

He has a different honor, a different heritage, and a different habitat than any other bird.

Today I would like to talk to you about the middle years of an eagle.

An eagle lives from 60 - 100 years. The oldest in captivity was 128.

The eagle is strong, powerful, feared, his momma taught him to fly, he’s mounted up wings, he learned about the things around him and the power God put in him.

The first thing I want you to know about an eagle is that he always has a rock.

Every eagle will claim a rock. No matter where he was born or where you might move him he always has a rock.

Some year’s back there was a program started called the hatching process, in order to save the eagle.

They let 4 golden eagles loose in Lafayette, Georgia.

I told you that an eagle is either born on or near a rock.

But here were four eagles that were born and raised in a building; they had never seen a tree.

The first time they put them on the ground, all four eagles ran straight to a big old rock and began to huddle up to it and hold on to that rock, claiming that rock.

If you ever want to find that eagle, all you need to do is hang around his rock.

Before to long he will come around because he goes to his rock every day.

When he needs comfort, he goes to the rock.

When he needs rest, he goes to the rock.

When he’s troubled, he goes to his rock.

When he needs cleansing, he goes to the rock.

He will never change rocks.

I’m glad we have the Rock of Ages, the Lord Jesus Christ and he is everything we need.

If we find ourselves in need all we have to do is go to the Rock.

There are a lot of fascinating things we can talk about today about the eagle, but I want to take a look at the middle years of an eagle.

The name of the message today is “The Dangers of Lodging in the Wilderness”.

During the middle years the eagle quits depending on his power and his ability to fly.

He comes down to earth and he stays to long, he lodges in the wilderness and the first thing he notices is his power is gone.

That happen to some church people.

•They had power with God,

•They had mounted up with wings,

•They had learned to soar above their problems,

•But they came back down to this world and got entangled in the affairs of this life and lost their power with God.

In the middle years of an eagle he goes through a stage in his life called the moping period.

This is a time of great depression in his life. It’s up to him whether he lives or dies.

He can stay in the valley or he can eat the meat from heaven, climb up the mountain and get back on his rock and start living.

Over in Cherokee NC there was an Indian by the name of Tacoma.

Bobby Thompson told of a trip that he and Tacoma took to a place called “Eagle’s Bluff”.