The Seven Principles of an Eagle by Myles Munroe

1. Eagles fly at high altitude and not with sparrows and other small birds. No other birds can go to the height of the eagle. Stay away from sparrows and ravens. Eagles fly with eagles. Move with people of like minds who will lift you up. Have a vision and reach for the highest level of achievement this New Year. Your limit is beyond the sky, so go for it. Yes you can.

2. Eagles have strong vision. They have the ability to focus on something up to five kilometers away. When an eagle sites his prey, he narrows his focus on it and set out to get it. No matter the obstacles, the eagle will not move his focus from the prey until he grabs it.
Have a vision and remain focused no matter what the obstacle and you will succeed. You need determination and tenacity to achieve your goals this year.

3. Eagles do not eat dead things. They feed only on fresh prey. Vultures eat dead animals, but eagles will not.
Be careful with what you feed your eyes and ears with, especially in movies and on TV. Steer clear of outdated and old information... Always do your research well.
Update your skills at every opportunity 'cos we live in an ever- changing world. Stay healthy by eating and exercising....... no junk food. Renew your mind with God's word always. May you receive help from above ijn.

4. Eagles love the storm. When clouds gather, the eagles get excited. The eagle uses the storm’s wind to lift it higher. Once it finds the wind of the storm, the eagles uses the raging storm to lift him above the clouds. This gives the eagle an opportunity to glide and rest its wings. In the meantime, all the other birds hide in the leaves and branches of the trees.
We can use the storms of life to rise to greater heights. Achievers relish challenges and use them profitably. There's bound to be storm in life. Whatever comes your way use it as a stepping stone to your greatness. Bad time doesn't last forever. Don't quit, just press for the prize.

5. The Eagle tests before it trusts. When a female eagle meets a male and they want to mate, she flies down to earth with the male pursuing her and she picks a twig. She flies back into the air with the male pursuing her.
Once she has reached a height high enough for her, she lets the twig fall to the ground and watches it as it falls. The male chases after the twig. The faster it falls, the faster he chases it. He has to catch it before it falls to the ground. He then brings it back to the female eagle.
The female eagle grabs the twig and flies to a higher altitude and then drops the twig for the male to chase. This goes on for hours, with the height increasing until the female eagle is assured that the male eagle has mastered the art of catching the twig which shows commitment. Then and only then, will she allow him to mate with her.
Whether in private life or in business, one should test commitment of people intended for partnership.
Tenacity and commitment are some of the elements of success.

6. The Eagle Prepares for Changes: When ready to lay eggs, the female and male eagle identify a place very high on a cliff where no predators can reach. The male flies to earth and picks thorns the intended nest. He flies back to earth and picks thorns laying them on top of the twigs. He flies back to earth and picks soft grass to cover the thorns.
When this first layering is complete the male eagle runs back to earth and picks more thorns, lays them on the nest; runs back to get grass it on top of the thorns, then plucks his feathers to complete the nest. The thorns on the outside of the nest protect it from possible intruders. Both male and female eagles participate in raising the eagle family. She lays the eggs and protects them; he builds the nest and hunts. During the time of training the young ones to fly, the mother eagle throws the eaglets out of the nest. Because they are scared, they jump into the nest again.
Next, she throws them out and then takes off the soft layers of the nest, leaving the thorns bare. When the scared eaglets again jump into the nest, they are pricked by thorns. Shrieking and bleeding they jump out again this time wondering why the mother and father who love them so much are torturing them. Next, mother eagle pushes them off the cliff into the air. As they shriek in fear, father eagle flies out and catches them up on his back before they fall and brings them back to the cliff. This goes on for sometime until they start flapping their wings. They get excited at this newfound knowledge that they can fly.
The preparation of the nest teaches us to prepare for changes; the preparation for the family teaches us that active participation of both partners leads to success; the being pricked by the thorns tells us that sometimes being too comfortable where we are may result into our not experiencing life, not progressing and not learning at all. The thorns of life come to teach us that we need to grow, get out of the nest and live on. We may not know it but the seemingly comfortable and safe haven may have thorns.

The people who love us do not let us languish in sloth but push us hard to grow and prosper. Even in their seemingly bad actions they have good intentions for us.

Please understand that God allows us to go through storms in life to catapult us to our greatness or prepare us for it. He cannot take you this far to abandon you because you are the apple of His Eyes. So keep going your breakthrough is at hand.

7. The Eagle Knows when to Retire: When an Eagle grows old, his feathers become weak and cannot take him as fast as he should. When he feels weak and about to die, he retires to a place far away in the rocks. While there, he plucks out every feather on his body until he is completely bare. He stays in this hiding place until he has grown new feathers, then he can come out.
We occasionally need to shed off old habits & items that burden us without adding to our lives.
ON the other hand, always take time out to rest. Hope you are blessed by this because I was.
God bless us all. May we soar on eagle’s wings this year. Amen

Faith in the Wilderness

by Olubunmi Salako on Sunday, January 16, 2011 at 5:36pm

Sometimes in our lives we face opposition on every side and we think there's no way out. We may feel that there will be no way in this wilderness and there can never be river in our deserts. It is only human to feel this way, but if we can only think back and remember a similar time in the past and how God rode the storm with us, then we'll be able to wake up that faith that seems dormant presently.

Whatever you are going through at this time, I want you to know God is fully aware of it. Just as He uses blessings, victories, breakthroughs to launch us to our destinies and bless our lives, so also He uses oppositions, persecution, rejection and closed doors to fulfill His divine plans and purpose for our lives. The most important thing when in the wilderness of life is to remind yourself that God is in control because He promises never to leave us or forsake us.

You may say, it's easy for me to say this because I don't know where you've been and what you are going through, but I want you to know that God knows everything. He will never take us through what His grace would not cover. His grace is sufficient for us all.

We must not complain about our situations and circumstances rather praise Him for them. 1Thess.5:18.

You know what? He knew about them before the foundation of the world. The Bible says to cast our burdens on Jesus for He cares...

Before God promoted King David, He allowed him to face his Goliath and King Saul. Before He delivered the Israelites from Egypt, they had to face Pharaoh and the Red Sea. Daniel faced the lions. Shadrach, Meshack and Abednego contended with the fiery furnace. The name of Jesus becomes 'The Strong Tower' after He shed His precious blood for me and you. The list is endless, all to the glory of His Mighty name and for the promotion and upliftment of His beloved. He didn't promise a trouble free life but He asks us to be of good cheer for He has overcome the world.

I encourage you to use your situation as a ladder to your destination in God. He orchestrates our lives in such a way that opposition, persecution, rejection etc are turned to our advantage especially when we remain in His will.

As you enter this new week, be assured that He's ready to catch whatever the world throws at you and will use it to glorify His name concerning you.

When you are opposed and men revile you, and say all manner of evil against you, don't be depressed rather rejoice. Matt. 5: 11 -12

Just believe that blessings and favour are on your way. Don't even contemplate a revenge so you don't lose your blessings.

Whatever looks like a set back now will definitely turn out to be a ladder with which you fulfill God's purpose for your life. God is still in the business of using our supposed enemies, situations and circumstances to promote His purpose for our lives.

So I encourage you to stop complaining, and start praising Him for a change and see how He transforms your tests and trials to testimonies. The Bible says God inhabits the praises of His people. You bring the presence of God into your situation when you praise Him for it.

Have a really blessed week. Shalom

Written by Olubunmi Salako and inspired by Joel Osteen