Joel Osteen

I love Joel Osteen. I loved reading his first book "Your Best Life Now". Now I am reading his 2nd book "Becoming a Better You". He is a very inspiring author and the personal stories from his life and from the life of his family members are so encourageing. So....... I wanted to share a "story" from his book. It is from page 277-280.

"Throughout Scripture, the person who truly trusts in God is compared to an eagle. The eagle has some pests, one of which is a crow. He's always squawking, always causing the eagle trouble. The truth is we all have a few crows in our life. You may have an entire flock of them.
Certain people can rub us the wrong way; they can irritate us if we allow them. We need to take a lesson from the eagle instead. When the eagle is out flying, often a crow will come up right behind him and start to pester him, aggravating and annoying him. Although the eagle is much larger, it cannot maneuver quickly. To get rid of his pest, the eagle simply stretches out his eight-foot wingspan and catches some of the thermal currents, and he rises up higher and higher. Eventually, he gets to an altitude where no other bird can live. The crow can't even breathe up there. On rare occasions, eagles have been spotted at altitudes as high as 20,000 feet, nearly as high as a jet flies.
In the same manner, if you want to get rid of your pest, you need to rise higher. Don't ever sink down to the opposition's level. Don't argue; don't try to pay somebody back; don't give them the cold shoulder. Be the bigger person. Over look their faults. Walk in love and dare to bless even your enemies. In the long run, crows can't compete with eagles.
Friends, you are an eagle. You've been made in the image of Almighty God. Learn to live above your circumstances. Rise above the petty politics at the office. Don't let people pull you into strife and division and get you all upset and gossiping.
You can do as the eagle and rise up above. An eagle lives in the high places where he is close to God.
You may not be able to change certain aspects of your life, but you can rise above them, Turn those situations over to God. Make a decision today that you are not going to allow those things to upset you and bother you anymore,
Interestly, the crow has to flap his wings tenaciously simply to fly. He has to work constantly. The chicken can barely get off the ground; not matter how much he flaps his wings. Yet an eagle merely catches the right wind currents and he'll soar. He doesn't have to be like the crow, working and straining all the time. He just puts his wings out and rests in what God has given him, letting the winds carry him.
Maybe you've been in a difficult situation for a long time. It just doesn't look like it's going to get any better. The storm is raging and you are discouraged. Life looks gloomy and you have found yourself living lower than God intends. You need to do like that eagle and rise higher, above your circumstances.
At times, I have been on an airplane about to take off. The skies outside are gray, overcast and depressing. Then the plane takes off, climbing throught the clouds. Finally, we break through the dismal skies, and behold, up above the clouds the sun is shining and the sky is bright blue. You can tell the air is crystal clear.
Now here's what intrigues me: The sun was shining the whole time. I just had to get a higher perspective to see it. Similarly, the clouds in your life are only temporary. It may look dark and dismal right now, but the sun is up there, shining brightly. One of the best things you can say to yourself when you are tempted to get discouraged is, "This too shall pass. It is not going to last forever. The clouds will dissipate one day, and I will see the goodness of God again in my life."
Friend, get a higher perspective. God is on you side. There's nothing to difficult for Him. Be the eagle God made you to be. Stretch your wings and rise to the level where God wants you to live. You were made to soar; your were made for more."