He satisfies you with goodness;
your youth is renewed like the eagle.Psalm 103:5
Is true worship actually the fountain of youth? Is there something that happens when we worship that makes us stronger, like when we were younger?
In reading the original Hebrew of Psalm 103:5 (thanks to commentaries, obviously, not my own personal ability to read Hebrew), it says that this renewal is like when an eagle is molting.
chadash [sounds like khaw-dash’] (verb) — a primitive root; to be new; causatively, to rebuild: renew, repair1
When eagles molt, they have to give up their feathers, because as they fly, fish, and nest, their feathers become heavy from being covered in dirt and oil. When they molt, the old feathers fall out and fresh new ones replace the old, allowing for better flying, soaring, and protection.
Isn’t that kind of like what happened to Paul and Silas? They worshiped and the things holding them back fell off. Isn’t it similar to Mary? Wasn’t David’s worship before King Saul a way to ease the pain of the king?
I’ve been blown away by this. I think it’s true in my life—the more I worship, the more I find beauty in Him, the more the things that bring me down molt off and are renewed in Christ. Wow, the things of this world do fade away, don’t they?
Today, I’m thinking of three situations where I could really use some molting. I have some financial worries that are causing stress in decision making. I just want to shake off the worries. My best friend just started dating a guy and suddenly my head is filled with, You’re always going to be alone; it will never be your turn; and why doesn’t God answer my prayers? kind of thoughts. Mucky, gross feathers for sure. I also have a friendship that’s struggling—there was a misunderstanding and for some reason I just can’t get over it. It feels weird and bad, and it makes me feel sadness.
It’s not that I want the people involved in these situations to be removed—it’s just places where I’m suffering a little, struggling a lot, and asking God what’s going on. And it feels like they’re bringing me down a bit. (Again, not the humans, just the situations and my worries.)
Those are the three feathers I want to see molt for me—to change my view. I want to see God more clearly, to hear His voice really well, and to learn and grow from the molting process. I want God to equip me to handle the experiences with grace and love, like Jesus.
Yet even in the molting process, the situations may not get better immediately. If we look back to the stories in the Bible, Miriam headed straight into a desert after singing her song. Mary was still young and pregnant. King Saul eventually tried to hunt David down to kill him, and Paul and Silas didn’t know if they’d ever get out of that prison.
What Psalm 103 tells us is that the feathers that hold us down, from sin or the muck of painful situations, those will molt off as we focus on God’s benefits, as we worship Him. We’ll feel lighter, younger, full of life. Maybe you will still have cancer, you will still be childless, you will not get the job. But the molting is more about perspective. You won’t be weighed down by worry, by anger. Your sin is forgiven. You are made whole in Christ.
I’m still single. My finances still cause some worries. My friendship still needs healing.
But I’m lighter. And as I worship, I just believe that the molting will continue until all that so easily entangles and holds me back will float off me like feathers from an eagle.
I’m believing God for that in my life. And in yours.
