Job 39:26: “Does the hawk fly by your wisdom, and spread its wings toward the south?”

January 3rd, 2024 by Pastor Ed in devotional

Job had wanted an audience with God, an opportunity to present his case, to ask Him why He had brought such suffering on him. But when God finally spoke to Job, He asked Job questions he couldn’t answer. In Job 39, God questioned Job about his knowledge of animal behavior, including the migration instincts of birds. God was asking, “Are you doing anything to sustain My creation, Job?” God’s point was that Job had neither the understanding nor the ability to change the instincts of animals.

By God’s design, some birds fly thousands of miles between the North Pole and the South Pole every year. One of the farthest flying birds is the arctic tern, traveling 14,000 miles, pole to pole, twice a year. One study found that a tern, taken from its nesting area and transported 3,200 miles away, returned 12.5 days later. The bird flew an average of 10.5 miles per hour, 24 hours per day, and ultimately found its way back to the precise nest it had been taken from.

Natural instinct is part of God’s design. Everything in God’s creation was made with a plan and a purpose, including human lives. That should be comforting to us when it seems that everything is flying out of control around us. Every one of us has unique problems and issues that we rarely see coming at us today, tomorrow, next week, or next year. Although we cannot be sure of what we might have to face, we can be sure of the character of the Creator who tells us that He’s got it all under control. And if we would quit worrying, complaining, fretting, and fuming; and just serve Him, then He will make it all turn out well.

“LORD, we are amazed by You, and give You control of our lives, asking You to make it all turn out well.”