"Get Out of the Nest!" by Dan McDonald

From the time an eagle is an embryo safe inside its egg to the time of its departure from home, the nest provides a place of love, security and freedom. The mother and father, mates for life by the way, nurture and guard their young until they know their baby is safe to take its first flight, usually around 10 - 13 weeks after birth. The eaglet often gets comfortable in the nest and would just stay there and let its parents keep feeding it. But the parents know unless their young (which now is the same size as they are) gets out on its own, it will not survive the brutality of the wild. So when the time comes, the adult eagles fly over the nest, hear their child call for food, but do not provide any for it. The eaglet grows thinner, and often pulls meat scraps from the "old" carcasses lying around in the nest. It may even capture a live bug or two - its first kill! It still does not venture outside the safety of the nest, however. So, many times, the mother will have to come and remove all the "soft" stuff from the nest exposing only sharp sticks making the nest an uncomfortable place to be. Stories have been told of mother eagles actually pushing their young out, forcing them to fly...or fall - not to worry, though; the FATHER is always close by to provide security in case the young is not strong enough on its first few flights. But eventually, usually six to nine weeks after it learns to fly and hunt its own food, the eaglet leaves the nest for good....... Our Father, God Jehovah provides comfortable places for us to live, dwell, learn, serve, exist for a while. Then, when it is time, He gently tells us to "Go. I have more for you to do besides sit, soak, and sour!" Well, we eventually get so comfortable in our little nests (church seats) that we forget about His call. So He must urge us in other ways, sometimes painful, much like the mother eagle and its little fledgling. As Christians we often lack faith on our part to "take flight." But, we must remember that the Father is ALWAYS near watching every move we make...ready to protect, keep, shelter, and help should his little ones need it. Comfort is good, but not at the expense of losing God's very best for us. So, spread those wings and fly - and for heaven's sake, get out of the nest!

In the "Nick of Time" by Dan McDonald

How many times have you heard or seen the phrase, "in the nick of time" in a movie or book, or maybe even experienced it yourself? We live in an extremely fast-paced society that has everything to us speedily...fast food, fast cash, speedy gas, express mail, high-speed internet, prompt service, and the list goes on. However, when these things fail, we often find ourselves in a quandary trying to gasp our next breath, because our pizza was delivered two minutes late, our internet has taken 30 seconds longer to respond, or our mail is a day late. Too many times, we throw up our hands in despair when confronted with these or similar circumstances. Perhaps you have situations in your life right now that tempt you to give up on God: a loved one who continues to reject God's Word; a difficult coworker who shows no sign of change; a child whose behavior takes you to your limits? You tell God, "I need your help, like, yesterday!!" Remember, we have a God who is in complete control and hears His children when they pray and cry out for help. He saves them repeatedly...often, "in the nick of time." Obviously, in God's frame of reference there is no "nick of time." His time is always ON TIME. Unfortunately, since our lives our governed by hours and minutes - even seconds, time is of the essence to us. Consequently, if something doesn't happen according to our "watch" we may often consider God to be late, and we fall into the trap of discouragement or frustration, most times the latter of the two. My mind my goes back to the story of when Saul first becomes the king of Israel, I Samuel 11. Just before he becomes king, the Israelites are confronted with Nahash the leader of the Ammonite army who has besieged Jabesh Gilead and is threatening to annihilate the whole city. The men of the Jabesh Gilead try and make a peace treaty with this tyrant, and in response Nahash gives them one condition, "that all the men pluck out their right eyes so that I can bring disgrace on the whole nation of Israel." Talk about being discouraged or frustrated!! They only have seven days to respond to his request. They scramble, fumble, and almost crumble until...God shows up - you guessed it - "in the nick of time." In short, God's spirit falls upon Saul and gives him the words to say to "encourage" the people to fight with him and allows Israel a huge victory. We could search the scriptures and find a plethora of examples of God's "nick of time" accomplishments. But, we have to remember - God's timing is never late or early it's always on time! So, take these situations that dishearten you and make you think God is not listening...allow Him to work His way, in His time.

To Be A Leader

Today there are many so-called "leaders." But, of those, which ones are TRUE leaders? We've heard that some people are "born" leaders. Well, this is true and consoling; especially if we understand the sovereignty of God. It is God who decides who will be the next leader - Think of the Old Testament and the many Kings Israel "went through." God didn't make a mistake by putting those people in charge...it was a all a part of His plan and purpose for the ages to come. Let's bring it on home to where we are today. God has already chosen who will be the next leader of country! You say, "No way! Dan, you've really gone off the deep end now!" Hang tight, I know this may be really baffling to some. However, remember who is Sovereign?! Now, I'm right there with you every night as we all watch the news and observe how the media pick apart each candidate, speculating who will be the next president and why. I just have to laugh inside as I watch them propose all the reasoning behind their assumptions. Then, I watch as, all of a sudden, something "unexpected" happens - and you know what I'm talking about...the twists and turns of this whole candidacy - and these experts scramble to figure out where they must have gone wrong. We, as Christians, must remember that God is in ultimate control and there are no "mistakes" or "oopsies" in His sovereign will. He uses ordinary men and women, boys and girls like you and me to fulfill His plan. So, don't lose hope when you see things seemingly fall apart. The same God who holds each atom in place is holding the stars, planets, and yes, even this present presidential race in His omniscient hands! I've often thought to myself over the past few months who I'd want to see be our next president from the nominees we have. "None!" is always my first response; however, at this point, "none" is not a viable option. Any and all of these candidates as a future president will only do this country more harm than good because their lives are so consumed with pride, deception and other sins that, I believe, will only desecrate our God-given land even more!...hmmmmm, the last time I checked, my life also had sin in it. And I'm a leader...well, I guess we all have a few options here: we can all just turn a "blind" eye to this whole drama, we can fall into deep despair and believe that even God can't fix this mess, or we can choose II Chronicles 7:14, which pleads, "If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land." I choose option number 3. Don't turn away or give up hope - Pray and seek His face! Then you also will become the leader God wants YOU to be.