Isaiah 40: On Wings of Eagles
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Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.
He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.
Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall
But those who wait upon the Lord
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary
They will walk and not be faint.
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Billy Mills is the only American who has ever won Olympic gold in the 10,000 meter race. Mr. Mills is Oglala Sioux. After losing both parents he turned to running to heal himself.
After training his whole life and coming close to Olympic victories, his body began to defeat him. He developed hypo glycemia, and low blood sugar prevented him from finishing races.
In the 1964 Olympics he had run a world record pace, but two other runners were still faster than him. His vision began to fail and his limbs grew numb. He was ready to give up. Then he saw an eagle on another runner’s jersey, and he felt his father’s spirit urging him on. He knew the ancestors were counting on him, and that he would never be this close to victory again.
“At that moment I felt that my father was helping me fly,” Mills said. He crossed the finish line first in 28:24 – 46 seconds faster than he had ever run that distance.
After the race Mills went back to find the runner who had an eagle on his jersey. He wanted to thank that man for helping him to find his own eagles wings. But there was no eagle to be found on anyones’ shirt. It was "only" a vision.
“Just” a vision? That vision helped Billy Mills fly. Who knows what that vision can do for you today? Listen to the ancestors cheering for you. It just might set you flying.