Winter 1986
The Eye of a Dove
Wade E Taylor

"I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go; I WILL GUIDE thee WITH MINE EYE. Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding; whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee" Psalm 32:8-9.

The Lord greatly desires a people who have a "single eye" towards Him, and who are sensitive and obedient to His will and purpose for them. It is His intention to bring these up into a special place that He has prepared for them.

The Lord pays a very special compliment to His bride in the first chapter of the Song Of Solomon. He sees in her a quality that attracts His attention and which He intensely desires to cultivate and develop within her. "Behold, you are fair, my love! Behold you are fair! You have dove's eyes" Song of Solomon1:15 NKJ.

A dove is often referred to as a "love bird" because it does not have "side vision". A dove fixes its gaze upon one object and then sees nothing else. It is not distracted by activities around it. A horse is different, it has side vision. It must have a bit and side blinders put on it, to keep it from TURNING ASIDE, because of what it sees.

The quality that so moved and attracted the Lord to her was her "single eye". She had cried out, "Tell me, O thou whom my soul lovest, where thou feedest, where thou makest thy flock to rest at noon: For why should I be AS ONE THAT TURNETH ASIDE by the flocks of thy companions?" Song of Solomon 1:7.

This intense desire that she expresses here is singularly towards her Lord. Now, she has a "single vision". She can no longer be satisfied with a knowledge of things about the Lord, she desires the Lord Himself. The ministries, abilities or personalities of His servants can no longer satisfy her. Now, she must know the Lord Himself.

An intense reduction of all her ambitions, dreams and desires has brought her to this place. Now, her vision is single and the Lord is ready to lead her on. His next word to her is, "Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away" Song of Solomon 2:10.

Psalm 27 was written by David about his experience with the Lord, as he hid in the back of a dark cave, while Saul's armies were outside seeking to kill him. In the darkness of his present circumstances, his dreams about sitting on the throne of an earthly kingdom, with all of its grandeur, faded in the light of the eternal Kingdom that he now saw.

In this seemingly hopeless situation, David realized that only that which is of God is of any value. All else vanished in the darkness of the cave, even the hope that he had received from the prophecy given to him by Samuel, that he would sit on the throne of Israel. Now, he sees only the Lord. He has been reduced to a single vision, he has the eye of a dove.

Only then could he say, "The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?...ONE THING have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in His temple" Psalm 27:1,4. Now, the values in his life were in Divine order, and the Lord could lead him on to the throne of Israel.

Jesus said, "But seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" Matt 6:33. The Lord is seeking those who are willing to be reduced to this singleness of vision. To these, He will then be able to say, "Behold, you are fair, you have dove's eyes".

Then, He will lead these up into a further experience of union with Him in bringing forth and establishing His purpose and Kingdom in the earth in our day.