The wise man Solomon, in his review of four things
that he, with his God-granted wisdom, could not understand, lists
an eagle in the air. Well, thousands of years later, after the
invention of modern technology - like high speed video, computer
analysis, and even the invention of man's ability to fly - we
are not much better off, and, in some ways, even more dumbfounded.
Let's spend just a few minutes looking at the birds of prey and
the abilities that God has designed in them.
The eagles, hawks, and falcons in the world of
the birds are oddities for their flying abilities. As all birds
do, these birds of prey have feathers, and it is these feathers
that allow them to fly very fast and catch their prey. Job has
referred to man's life on earth as "the eagle that hasteth
to the prey." chapter 9 verse 26. While life is, indeed,
short, I, for one, am extremely glad it is not as fast as the
world's fastest birds of prey catching their food. This process
in the case of the peregrine falcon is so far beyond man's understanding
that it is almost shameful how little we really understand. In
recent years it has come to light that the fastest animal on earth
may not have even "put the pedal to the metal" yet!
In recent studies of the peregrine falcon's flying
speeds, it now appears that 100 miles per hour is just a warm
up for this bird. When given the opportunity to show how fast
they can fly, the peregrine falcons have constantly risen to the
challenge and have now been clocked at more than 240 miles per
hour. It now appears that the only thing that prevents us from
knowing how fast they can fly, is our own limited ability to design
ways to challenge them. When trained to fly with a free-falling
parachutist, the falcon has always been able to fly faster after
bait than the man could make the bait go! It is speculated that
300 miles per hour may easily be within its ability when in a
free fall dive. Each time the speeds of the bait were increased,
the birds were able to tuck into more streamlined shapes and go
into "hyper drives" to outrun the target.
How do they do this? Well, in every way God is
showing His power and knowledge in the creation of the peregrine
falcon. Besides their streamlined head, body, and wings, the falcon's
feathers have saw-toothed shapes that taper down to nothing. It
appears that these types of feathers disrupt the air flow over
the wings less than other types of feathers, allowing faster flight.
Computer analysis for NASA in fluid dynamics shows that many of
the creations of God show these streamlined abilities.
The trained falcon in a display of its God given
abilities for speed, flight, and agility, would, at more than
150 miles per hour, catch up with and then fly below the bait,
then flip upside down, slow its speed and wait with its talons
pointing upward and catch the bait.
God correctly asked Job about how smart mankind
really was, and He used the hawk to see if we can explain these
things. Job could not answer God and, today, NEITHER CAN WE! Let
us honor and praise the creator.
"Doth the hawk fly by thy wisdom, and stretch
her wings toward the south? Doth the eagle mount up at thy command,
and make her nest on high? She dwelleth and abideth on the rock,
upon the crag of the rock, and the strong place. From thence she
seeketh the prey, and her eyes behold afar off." Job 39:26-29.
Rt. 1 Box 116A, Belington, WV 26250. (304) 823 2776. aedeverson@yahoo.com