Just because a book has been in print for over thirty years doesn’t mean it packs a less powerful punch for those who read it today.
Although I have read and recommended many books to others, this is the first book I’ve reviewed on my blog.
Throughout my years in Christendom, I have heard pastors and Bible teachers share brief anecdotes on the theme of this enlightening and inspiring book.
But it wasn’t until recently, when I was at my mother-in-law’s, that I spotted the original source for all of these stories—Peter Lord’s Turkeys & Eagles—published in 1987.
I was so excited when she said I could borrow it.
I took it home with the intention of reading it right away, put it on a shelf in my library, and quickly forgot about it.
It wasn’t until I needed to edit a portion of my first book, His Banner Over Me Is Pursuing Love, that I pulled it from the shelf and began devouring it.
Have you ever had the thought, “I can’t believe I’ve had this treasure within my reach all this time without enjoying its contents!”
Sometimes I think that, and then I realize God’s timing is always perfect.
He calls our attention to something when we will receive the most benefit from it.
Turkeys & Eagles is a quick and easy read (I read it in a couple of hours), containing 101 pages.
The first two sentences in the preface were enough to lure me in:
“We are all in danger of falling into the same trap that Adam and Eve fell into.”
“They were tempted to become something they already were.”
I underlined the word “already” in this quote because God has used this word again and again in my life to cause me to experience the liberating truths of the finished work of Christ.
In fact, one of my blog categories is titled “Done Deal” because the finished work of Christ is the foundation of our faith.
Now, on to my review.
Lord begins his book by inviting his readers to take a short test consisting of nine true and false and four short answer questions.
He lets his readers know that they will revisit their answers after they are finished reading the story to see how well they scored.
Turkeys & Eagles is about two newborn sibling eaglets, Hagen and his sister, Selin, who have been unintentionally abandoned by their eagle parents.
You may be wondering how parents could unintentionally abandon their children.
That’s something you will find out if you read the book.
Afraid they are going to starve to death, Hagen and Selin leave the comfort of their aerie to find food.
They soon encounter a flock of turkeys, whose confident and compassionate leader, Brant, decides to adopt these two “little turkeys” into his family.
For awhile, Hagen and Selin are elated over their being taken in by these odd-looking birds.
There is plenty of turkey food (though not very satisfying) to eat and they are no longer alone.
As time passes, Selin seems to readily adapt to the turkey way of life.
But something deep within her brother’s heart tells him “there’s got to be a more to life” than gobbling (turkeys can be pretty noisy at times) and hunting for turkey food.
Sometimes he gets this overwhelming desire to flap his wings and soar above the clouds, but then quickly realizes how ridiculous the idea seems.
After all, turkeys don’t fly.
The rest of Hagen’s journey entails how his discontent drives him to seek real answers to his nagging questions.
And with the guidance of a wise old bird named Drew, he is able to find the truth about who he really is and the kind of life he is meant to live.
While I was unable to locate an audio version of this book, I was able to find two messages that Lord himself gave on it at DiscipleshipLibrary.com, titled Eagles and Turkeys and Fly with Eagles While Living with Turkeys.
I hope my brief review of Turkeys & Eagles has sparked within you a desire to read it.
My driving passion in everything I write is to tell (or remind) Christians who they already are in Christ and how they can soar on wondrous heights of intimacy with Him.
In fact, Day 17, “Do You Know Who You Already Are?”, from my newest book, Fifty Days in His Pursuing Love Devotional, is all about our settled identity in Christ.
*If you enjoyed this post, then I think you would enjoy both of my books where I share about the incredible hope we have as believers in Christ.
I was read the book, then I read it for myself. Turkeys and Eagles by Peter Lord has helped me immensely with the urge to be who I am already in Christ. I cannot do the “turkey walk” again. A must read for Believers who are not satisfied with church practices that teaches conformity and division or as Paul the apostle put it, “sectarianism” which is missing the mark of the HIGH CALLING.
I’m glad you enjoyed the book, Deborah. Such a great picture of our identity! It’s all about who we are in Him and our continual trust and dependence on His life in us to inspire and empower us from the inside out. I believe the highest calling is believing who we already are, soaking in His unconditional love, and enjoying and trusting Him continually.