Category Archives: Falconry

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Wings of Eagles (part 2)

Hearing, knowing, and following God’s Will in YOUR very own life.

At the sound of my voice/whistle, this red tail hawk has flown from over 100 yards away to land on my glove. Why? Well, it was my will to have him come to me. Also, Dak, (this red tail hawk), has a will of his on. He’s free to fly away at any time. He’s free to choose what his next move will be. In this case, it was Dak’s will to come to me. Look a there! My will and Dak’s will are one and the same. But Why?

Dak and I have a relationship. We are two completely different creatures, but yet we both want the same thing. In the sport of falconry, the hawks and falcons are trained/manned to come to the falconer when called. Every time, and I mean every time, we call them they get a tidbit of food. They learn quickly to follow the falconer because he will offer a tidbit of food. Even better, the falconer will give the hawk opportunities and an advantage to catch various prey for their next meal. It may be a rabbit, squirrel, and sometimes a quail. Hey, remember Dak is a bird of prey. Can I offer him a salad? That ain’t happening! He eats meat! My vegetarian friends out there have come to understand that they can refrain from eating meat. But Dak….. well, he wants meat for breakfast, meat for dinner, and what would he want for dessert? Yep, you guessed it. Meat.

Back to this knowing my will for the hawk. I want what’s best for this hawk. After all, while he’s in my possession, he IS my bird. I want to enjoy being around Dak. I get to admire and be amazed at his hunting and flying skills. There is no set agenda, no specific plan. It’s that I want a relationship with this beautiful hawk, much like many of you have a relationship with your dog, horse, or cat. My will for this hawk is to be involved with his everyday life.

Hmmm, so what’s this hawk’s will concerning me? I can promise you the very first day we met he was nothing but scared of me. Through the training/manning sessions, after several days he didn’t understand me. But he began to trust me. Yes! The relationship has been created!

All right. Let’s get a little serious here. Is there any way that your will for what’s going on in your life can be the same as God’s Will and what he wants in your life? We talked about the thermals in the air last week. These thermals are sought after by birds of prey to carry them on their journeys in the air. God offers you “thermals” to help you on your journey as well. For you to be in God’s will you’ve got to seek Him. For your will to be His will, you’ve got to get passed the “scared” part of this encounter. Get over the lack of understanding the relationship. Allow God to give you His training/manning/guidance and direction. How does He do that? He works through you! Your prayers, your meditations, your interactions with other Christians/church are ways that He develops this spiritual relationship with you.

In this modern world, it’s truly hard to hear God’s direction for me and you. It’s not because God’s not there. It’s because of distractions. So many things both good and bad pull us away from hearing God’s Will for our lives.

Here’s a perfect example. Turn on two different radios. then add the TV. Might as well grab 3 or 4 books. Now, grab a pencil and write down what you are going to do tomorrow. Be specific. Also write down the songs you are hearing, the show your watching, and the plot of each of the books your are reading. Oh, everyone knows you’ve also got to list a few things you’ve seen today on Facebook. Complicated? Confusing? Frustrating and Irritating ? You bet. But honestly isn’t that how we live our lives every day. How can you see the “thermals” that God is providing for you when all of life’s distractions are smothering you?

How do you see and hear God’s Will in your life? A huge step is to take time out from life’s distractions. Take a break. Don’t worry. Life and it’s busyness will be waiting for you to get back. Find you a quiet place in the wilderness. My wilderness is in the mountains of Colorado or the swamps of Mississippi. Where is your wilderness? It may be in the chair your sitting in right now. Anywhere that you can dismiss the distractions in your life for just a few minutes. Your car, your back yard, wherever you can focus on your will. And God’s Will. And can the two be the same? You praying, meditating, reading scripture are all ways to focus on God and His Will for you on this Christian journey.

I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me. Proverbs 8:17 ESV

Get rid of distractions. Look for God’s Will. Then ride the “thermals”!

See Ya! Dan Ainsworth wilderness preacher

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Wings of Eagles

Hundreds of hawks are riding in this thermal. It can carry them sometimes for hundreds of miles. These birds of prey soar in the rising heated air. They don’t have to flap their wings! They fly! They soar! But first, they have to wait.

I took this short video with my son in Houston Texas last week. It was an amazing sight to behold.

The science and biology class is now in session. From the website allthingsbirding.com is this explanation. “Birds use gliding and soaring to save energy while flying. Gliding is when a bird flies without flapping its wings. Birds can glide by using the wind to stay aloft. Soaring is when a bird flies without flapping its wings and gains altitude by using rising air currents. Birds can soar by using thermals, which are columns of warm air that rise from the ground.“

Class dismissed.

How can a hawk fly such a long distance as well as stay aloft for great lengths of time? Thermals. Riding the thermals allow these hawks to soar for hours and travel many, many miles. Again understand that they don’t flap their wings. They don’t have to. BUT,………they have to wait!

Thermals are only active during certain times of the day. (Usually mid-morning until late afternoon.) As you drive out and about, look for hawks. You’ll tend to see hawks perched on trees and powerlines during early morning and towards the end of the day. There is no thermal activity then. That’s when they are waiting. During the middle of the day, take a look above you. Odds are you will see a bird riding the thermals of the sky. It may be a vulture, a seagull, a hawk, and yes, even an eagle.

They stretch out their majestic wings. Wings stretched out, feathers lined up in patterns that catch the power and forces of the wind, this bird of prey can travel effortlessly. By waiting on the thermals, they now have the power and the ability to travel on their journey. You and I get to see these magnificent creatures being and doing what God created them to do. They live this way because they know they have to wait.

They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. Isaiah 40:31

So, live your spiritual life like a hawk. Be ready to soar, but also be ready to wait! Wait on upon the Lord.

That doesn’t mean wait by sitting on the couch eating Cheetos! No it means waiting on the Lord for His strength, His power, His direction. Wait like a hawk by looking for the next “thermal.” Oh sure, you can live this life on your own, but you will constantly be “flapping your wings”,…… and growing tired!

Instead, wait upon the Lord. “Go with the flow”, in the “thermals” that He supplies for you. It causes you to focus on His direction and His timing. It causes You to be in “His Will”. It causes you to rise as if on Eagles wings.

How can you find the “thermals” that God provides for you? Leave me your comments. We will continue this adventure on finding God’s thermals for YOU in the next blog.

Until then, listen to the song by Chris Tomlin– I Will Rise

See Ya! Dan Ainsworth wildernesspreacher

Soaring in this life, not because of me but because of my Lord

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The First Step of Believing

A Step of Trust

There it is! That first step of trust and the bond that will grow between two very different creatures. One creature is a very wild hawk, the other creature is …….me.

“Dak” has experienced being trapped from the wild, tethered to a perch in his new home, and placed repeatedly back on my glove. I gently work with him for hours (called manning) to get him use to my presence. From the very beginning, all he knows if fear. In his previous wild world, it’s eat or get eaten. It’s kill or be killed. Nature is cruel, nature is tough. It’s truthfully the survival of the fittest.

The first few hours, I place “Dak” on my gloved fist. He will try to fly away, but I have him leashed to my glove. He attempts to fly, I gently swing him back on the glove. All the time, I don’t look directly at him. Think about why I don’t. You see, in the wild, when a hawk (with that intense eyesight) looks at another animal, he’s either looking to kill it……or it’s looking to kill him. Dak must learn to trust and believe in me as someone who is not going to hurt him. Incredibly, hawks trained in falconry learn in just a few days that I am not a threat, but someone who actually protects and feeds them.

It’s easy to tell when the hawk is calming down. As I walk around his mews (the fenced pen) with him on my glove, I feel his talons gradually relaxing on my glove. Thank goodness, because when he clamps down with those talons it’s with a surprising amount of strength. If that thick glove wasn’t there, I’d be getting plenty of tattoos from those claws. I have a few scars from the past to prove it!

Gradually, this wild creature begins to accept my presence. In Dak’s case it’s happening very quickly. In less than five hours from being trapped, he’s eating from my hand! It could be because he has a gentle personality. All the hawks I’ve flown over the years were different. Some were gentle, some acted nervous, some aggressive. “Tama”, one of my best hunting hawks from a few years ago could only be described as Wicked!!!

But Dak is very calm. I place a small piece of chicken in front of him. Remember, I don’t look directly at him during any of this training. (Just looking at him from my peripheral (side) vision.) He actually doesn’t eat the chicken. What I do is touch the sides of his beak with the meat. He bites at me and the meat gets caught in his mouth. FREEZE!  I don’t move. For however long it takes, I don’t move. He is standing on my glove with a piece of fresh meat in his mouth. Amazing what his body language shows. See, Dak’s not moving either. He’s still scared. But the whole time he’s sitting (on my glove) he is now tasting fresh food that is resting in his mouth. That’s when it happens……….. He swallows a nourishing morsel of food. The body language? Suddenly from fear to a small step of trust. His talons relax, his wings are not rigid, his eyes are no longer focused on “kill or be killed”. What next? Quickly another piece of food is placed in his mouth. FREEZE! Again, don’t move until he swallows his meal. Then quietly and gently I exit his new home. I’ll return in the morning. He’s been given plenty to think about.

The next morning I return with more time spent manning Dak. He’s still getting used to me. Learning to trust and believe in me. I spend this time walking around with him on my glove. I make noises, pick up items and move them. Sit down, stand up, walk backwards…….. doing any and everything. All the while Dak is riding and resting on my glove. He needs to know he can feel comfortable standing on the glove. Occasionally he will attempt to fly from the glove. I gently place him back on for more training. Now for the next big step! Literally!!!

Dak remembers that I fed him yesterday. Today I show him a piece of chicken by placing it in front of his beak. Today he snatches it from my hand. No need to try to get him to bite me, he’s hungry and he’s eating from my hand. Success!! Now for the next step and I do mean a step.

Since Dak knows there is food in my hand he readily wants to eat it. But I now want him to come towards me, to take a step towards me. There is a giant leap involved in the hawk’s mind in doing this. For him to step towards me is so foreign to his way of thinking. He has all this time been trying to get away from me. I am a creature he is afraid of. For him to take even one small step towards me……….involves a decision. It’s a decision of trusting and believing. Dak has taken his first step to believing that I no longer want to hurt him, but that I want to help him.

The first step!

Dak is taking his first step to me! Notice the body language. (I can feel it as well.) The claws are clamped, the wings are ready to spring into flight, and the eyes are filled with fear. In spite of this natural fear of me, the belief that I am not a threat but instead someone to trust has taken over! This thrills me to no end!

“Dak” now believes in me!

The picture shows the same bird but with a totally different mind set. A change in his way of thinking. His trusting and believing in me can even be seen (and felt). Claws are relaxed, wings in the resting and calm position. You can even see a different expression on his face. Two entirely different creatures are now beginning an adventure based on trust and believing in each other.

Overhearing what they said, Jesus told him, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.” Mark 5:36

This is a great scripture talking about believing. (I’d encourage you to read the whole chapter. Several instances of unbelievable miracles that Jesus is doing). Here in Dak’s situation it was a remarkable thing for me to see. Once Dak believes in me and no longer is afraid of me,……. well, it’s game on!!! The excitement I have of interacting with this magnificent creature is one of my greatest thrills! He has taken one small step to me. This will quickly lead to him taking 3 steps to me. Then he will jump to me. Then he will take a short flight to me. Then in such a short time period, he will be free flying and hunting WITH me. I am DELIGHTED!!!!

Just like God delights in you trusting in Jesus and taking a small step of belief towards Him! (stay tuned, till next time, Dan Ainsworth wilderness preacher, having taken a small step of belief of my own towards my Lord and Saviour!)