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TheDiscipleMD

I came upon them unexpectedly as I rounded a turn in the road. They quickly flew into the air as my car sped by. I have seen them many times over my life! Buzzards! They are messengers of impending doom and death, who circle over their wounded prey; waiting for the last dying gasps of a life that was once vibrant. Then, they swoop down to devour the remains of the day. It is an ugly sight! They are ugly birds! They are called Gray-faced, Black-breasted, Black Honey, or White-eyed buzzards. They could be a variety of the Hawk or Vulture family. No matter, their mission is the same; they target the weak, the faint, the old, the tired, the wounded. They patiently wait for the “fall”. Circling, circling, waiting, waiting till……well, the end. They don’t cause the death, but they revel in it. They keep their distance but ultimately enjoy the spoils. Yes, when we see them, we know that someone or something is in trouble. In the early days of this country, such buzzards feasted upon the flesh of man; not so today, with our modern society and methods of burial. Now you only see them, as I did that day, by the roadside, enjoying the local road kill.

We are physically safe from the circling buzzards of yore, but the minions of evil have and will continue to spiritually circle above us till the end of the world. Make no mistake; they are dangerously circling overhead of us all, waiting…waiting…, like the Buzzard, for the moment when they sense weakness, fatigue and discouragement. They will swoop down with their sharpened claws, and hooked beaks in hopes of inflicting pain, suffering and ultimately, they desire our spiritual death. They are ferocious and ugly and go by many names. They promote avarice, greed, pride, jealousy and a host of other sins that are contrary to the nature of God. They are constantly circling the highway of life, ever watching for an opportune time to strike. They know that we are most weak when we are going through trials. They revel in our pain, in hopes that the trials of this world will make us weak instead of strong. They live as scavengers of this world, cast out for their disobedience and for their rejection of the plan of salvation. They want to feast on our flesh because they were denied that blessing. They want us to be miserable like them. They desire for us to join them in becoming “spiritual buzzards.”

We can protect ourselves against these “spiritual buzzards” because they circle more prevalent over unholy places. We need to chart our course so that we are found traveling in holy places. Places that provide protection from their view. Where are the holy places? David testified, Who shall stand in his holy place? He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive the blessing from the Lord, and righteousness from the God of his salvation” (Psalm 24: 3-5). If we keep our own lives clean and pure, the “spiritual buzzards” will not have the power to inflict pain and suffering in our lives. We will be traveling roads where they are rarely found. Job, in his wisdom saw that “There is a path which no fowl knoweth, and which the vulture’s eye hath not seen” (Job 28:7) He knew that there is wisdom in following the path of the Lord. On that path we will find safety from the circling buzzards of Lucifer. It is when we veer off the path that we endanger ourselves to them.

Hold to the iron rod as described by father Lehi. :”Spiritual buzzards” will always be circling above us. But by standing in “holy places” we can prevent them from landing and ravishing our lives.