"Recovering Hope"

"Make Thy face to shine upon Thy servant: save me for Thy mercies' sake." (Psalms 31:16) I could have spent a few more days on those last few verses, but I am really looking forward to getting to the next Psalm; besides, sometimes I have a tendency to say a little too much, when I should just shut up and let God speak! But here we have a tragic mistaken identity problem that so many of us forget, especially when we are in the midst of something that is overwhelming us; it's a little thing called ownership, and it involves that fact that we are God's property; therefore, we really do not own our own life, so why in the heck don't we chill out and enjoy our Master's accommodations? That might seem a little strong, but after some of the things I felt God tugging on my heart over yesterday, I can see that so many times I place way too much attention on my own efforts, and not enough focus on God's provisions which are all ready at my disposal. After a brief study of what happens in the case of young eagles that learn to fly, I came to a quandary in analyzing my own life experiences, and whether I was one of those that left the nest through enticement, or if I was one that was literally kicked out of the nest by force. The success rate is rather high for those that leave on their own, through being enticed with prey from the parent eagle; however, with those that refuse to leave on their own, and must be pushed out, only 40% of them survive and learn to fly on their own. And as with most times when I get excited about something that God has shown me, I can tend to get a little carried away in my own thoughts, and can end up spinning in circles within my own head; until I get to a point where I throw my hands up, and say, Lord help! Anyhow, I began to see this difference within these two mentalities of eagles as those that think 'can' and those that think 'will'. On the surface, it might appear that the 'wills' are the strong ones, because they make a stand and imagine themselves strong enough to be that good at something; without realizing that sometimes 'will' is not there to make it happen! On the other hand, we have the 'cans', who, although they seem less confident in their ability to achieve at something they must do, they are less attentive in their own 'will' to make it happen, and more focused on the provisions that have been given them. Here is my example of what I just said: I still have breath, and therefore, I 'can' still praise Him... "For the terrible one is brought to nought, and the scorner is consumed, and all that watch for iniquity are cut off: that make a man an offender for a word, and lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate, and turn aside the just for a thing of nought. Therefore thus saith the LORD, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob, Jacob shall not now be ashamed, neither shall his face now wax pale. But when he seeth his children, the work of Mine hands, in the midst of him, they shall sanctify My name, and sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and shall fear the God of Israel. They also that erred in spirit shall come to understanding, and they that murmured shall learn doctrine." (Isaiah 29:20-24)