I sloshed waist deep in a slow, friendly creek, inhaling forest smells and an occasional gnat. A beaver slapped its tail a few feet away, and his image faded under water before I refocused on the elk-hair caddis sinking ahead of my fly line.

Perhaps it was time to refit my tippet with a woolybooger…

Then I heard it.

Wings.

The Apostle John described the sound of wings as thundering like an “army of chariots” (Revelation 9:9). But the wings behind me favored Isaiah’s description as “fluttering sails” (Isaiah 18:1).

The winged presence materialized as a bald eagle beating the air above my head. I felt a shiver—like a feather brushing between my shoulder blades—and the raptor climbed steeply above the greenwood.

In the Cave of Adullam, David, too, experienced a flutter in his soul, like some unseen “something” flew near.

Listen to his prayer: “Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy! I look to you for protection. I will hide beneath the shadow of your wings until the danger passes by. I cry out to God Most High, to God who will fulfill his purpose for me.” (Psalms 57:1)

Alone in a dank cave, David overcame uncertainty by trusting God to “fulfill his [God’s] purpose” in his life. The disturbance in his soul turned to assurance as he knelt to pray beneath the shadow of God’s wings.

Disrupting questions flutter in everyone’s soul at times, but childlike trust transforms doubt to faith as we agree with God’s word:

“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” (Romans 8:28)

­The flutter of uncertainty won’t last. Be confident in the one who covers you—in cave, creek, or castle.

…but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. (Isa. 40:31)