CREATION MOMENTS: 2.24.17

MISIDENTIFICATION

Galatians 1:8

"But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed."
One of the best strategies for overcoming an opponent is to fool the opponent into thinking you do not exist. Then you infiltrate your opponent and make him think that you are on his side.

This is the tactic used by the microorganism responsible for the potentially fatal tropical disease, leishmaniasis. The disease is spread by a number of species of tropical blood-sucking sand flies. When they attack, they inject some of the microorganisms into the bloodstream. Infection can cause painful skin sores. If the protozoans migrate to internal organs, they can fatally injure the liver or the spleen. The result, then, is a fatal disease called the black sickness.

Normally, the organism that causes the disease would be consumed and destroyed by the white blood cells as part of the normal working of the immune system. However, the bugs actually live within the white blood cells that have consumed them and subvert the cells themselves. They take over a cell's chemical machinery and prompt it to make a growth factor called TGF-beta. This chemical neutralizes the chemical that white cells use to kill the microorganisms. It's normally made by the white cells only after an infection has been stopped. In other words, the proteins fool the immune system into giving the all-clear.

We are most spiritually vulnerable when we think that we have lived such good lives that we are in no need of having our sins forgiven. That lie subverts our dependence on Jesus Christ, our only Savior from sin, in Whom we find forgiveness.

Forgive me, Father in heaven, for those times when I have congratulated myself on my goodness rather than relying on the only One who is perfect – my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. In His Name. Amen.

 

THE MESSIAH OF THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS

Acts 17:2-3

"Then Paul, as his custom was, went in to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and demonstrating that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, 'This Jesus whom I preach to you is the Christ.'"
A debate has broken out over the image of the Messiah that's presented in one of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Two American scholars have claimed that one of the scrolls talks about the leader of the religious community being put to death.

Since the scrolls date from about 200 B.C. to 50 A.D., some scholars say that this means the idea of an executed leader is not unique to Christianity. Modern biblical critics view Christianity as a result of human social evolution rather than revelation. Therefore they try to find the evolutionary steps in the development of Christianity. According to their translation, the scroll in question reads: "and they put to death the leader of the community, the Branch of David, with wounds (also 'stripes' or 'piercings')."

However, Hebrew scholars convened a special seminar that brought together 20 scholars from around the world to study the question. They unanimously concluded that the original translation, offered by an Oxford scholar, is accurate. The correct translation says that the Branch of David will kill Israel's enemies, not be killed by them. They base this conclusion not only on the Hebrew, but on several other texts that speak of the Messiah as a leader who shall free Israel from her political oppressors. This was, in fact, the common expectation at the time of Christ.

It is impossible to understand Christianity when one rejects divine revelation. Christianity is not the product of man's mind, but of God's love.

Lord, I thank You for the revelation of Your Word in the Bible. I pray that You would make Your people wise and more knowledgeable so that they would not be easily fooled by those who do not accept Your Word. Amen.

 

THE TALKING EAR

James 1:22

"But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves."
Can your ear talk to you? New research seems to show that your ear actually generates sound that echoes whatever you hear.

Startled scientists are making new discoveries that appear to show that we have hearing aids built into our ears. Yes, our ears do produce sounds. When sound hits the eardrums, the vibrations move bones within the ear, causing a bone called the stapes to vibrate. These vibrations are translated to pneumatic pressure within the cochlea. The oscillating pressure is picked up by tiny inner hairs in the cochlea that vibrate with the sound. These vibrations generate an electrical signal that is sent to the brain.

Researchers have learned that outer hair cells within the cochlea respond to the incoming signals by generating audible sounds that can be picked up by tiny microphones. The sounds are generated as the hairs dance up and down in time with the incoming sound, just like the cone of a loudspeaker. The effect is that the ear echoes the incoming sound a few thousandths of a second after it enters the ear. The echo generated within the cochlea is not necessary for hearing. However, scientists suspect that this feedback system helps people smoothly hear sounds that range from soft to loud. Some scientists have voiced their skepticism about these astonishing findings.

Our ability to hear sound is much more elegant in design than scientists ever expected. The technically precise details of the ear's design discredit all claims that the ear could have evolved.

Lord, let my voice praise You for all the great things You have done. Let me always be glad to hear Your Word and, assured of Your forgiving grace, put it into practice in my life. Amen.

 

 

SECRET INTELLIGENCE FROM THE DEITY

Genesis 1:21

"So God created great sea creatures and every living thing that moves, with which the waters abounded, according to their kind, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good."
Whales can maneuver precisely through the world's oceans and ice floes and among each other. Herman Melville noted this when he wrote in Moby Dick that whales seem to be guided by a "secret intelligence from the Deity."

Much about that "secret intelligence" remains a secret to this day. It is known that sperm whales can echolocate in the same way that bats do. They send out a series of clicks from a special organ in their head. However, other species of whales lack that organ. Scientists think that other whales may use a less precise method of echolocation based on their low pitched calls.

Whales also use sounds to communicate with each other. Scientists have catalogued at least 23 different sperm whale click arrangements. Some of the patterns always follow other patterns, indicating that the clicks are a form of language. Some whales are believed to carry out conversations over thousands of miles. Scientists believe that some of the frequencies used by the whales allow them to communicate with other whales halfway around the world. The haunting melodies of the hump back whale are mating songs. The songs can last as long as 30 minutes. A humpback song will be the same within a single population of whales and sometimes within an entire ocean basin!

Whales are beautiful creatures. While they are intelligent, they are not as intelligent as once thought. However, they still glorify their Creator.

Dear heavenly Father, I thank You for making whales and showing forth Your glory and Godhead by giving them such wonderful abilities. Help me to use the abilities You have given me to glorify You, too. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

Carpenter, Betsy, with Karen F. Schmidt. 1992. Whales. U.S. News & World Report, July 13. p. 58.

 

SCIENTIST SEA LIONS

Job 12:9-10

"Who among all these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this, in whose hand is the life of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind?"
Does a sea lion make a good scientist? Human scientists say that sea lions show a good understanding of complex relationships between variables.

At the Long Marine Lab at the University of California at Santa Cruz, sea lions are indeed in training for scientific careers. The sea lions will not only be doing research on themselves, but also on other sea creatures. One of their most interesting tasks is videotaping gray whales in the ocean depths. In fact, they are being trained in tanks to learn how to take good videos. Scientists feel that since the whales are used to seeing sea lions, they will behave more naturally than they do when human beings are taping them. In addition, sea lions can dive to depths that would be difficult for human divers to reach. The sea lions will also wear monitors that record their own body functions.

Trainers describe sea lions as more intelligent than dogs. Sea lions prefer interaction with humans, especially games, to food as a reward. One researcher noted that the sea lions now undergoing training will select a Wiffle ball rather than fish, when given a choice. Scientists say that the sea lions in training will follow a broad range of instructions if they are kept entertained. They will dive to specific depths and remain there until instructed to surface.

God has given His creatures intelligence based on their needs, not on their resemblance to man. This simple principle explains why the claims that man arose from the animal world are wrong.

Thank You, Lord, for the wonderful creatures You have made, especially those that interact with us. Help those who work with the creatures You have made to clearly see how these creatures glorify You and proclaim Your work of creation. Amen.

 

 

 

CREATION MOMENTS: 2.17.17

A SCALED MAMMAL

Psalm 105:5

"Remember his marvellous works that he hath done; his wonders, and the judgments of his mouth;"
Its long, slender, scale-covered body glides along the ground on four short legs, each of which has sharp claws. Its slender head has no teeth. It will not seek to hurt you, but if it feels threatened it will lash out with that scale-armored tail.

While this creature sounds very much like a reptile, it is, in fact, a mammal called the pangolin. There are seven species of pangolins scattered through Africa and Asia. Typically, the female pangolin will give birth to a single young one after a 140-day gestation period. When full grown, the young one, like its parents, will be almost two feet long and weigh about 20 pounds. In addition to using its tail for defense, it can also spray a bad-smelling liquid like a skunk. If all else fails, it can roll into a tight armored ball. Its feeding behavior is similar to a nocturnal anteater. The pangolin's highly developed sense of smell can actually sniff out ant and termite mounds. When it finds a nest, it uses its long, sticky tongue to collect a meal. Unfortunately, the endangered pangolin is prized as a delicacy as well as a medicine among the hill tribes where it lives. Lions and tigers also feed on pangolins.

Pangolins are another example of God's unlimited creativity and His power and wisdom which allows Him to bring about whatever He desires. His greatest desire is for our salvation through the innocent suffering of Jesus Christ.

Dear Father, I stand in wonder at Your creation and the variety You have made. Amen.


"Pangolin," World Book Multimedia Encyclopedia (2001).

 

AMOEBA MIDWIVES

Genesis 35:17

"And it came to pass, when she was in hard labour, that the midwife said unto her, Fear not; thou shalt have this son also."
Ever since Old Testament times, midwives have been helping mothers during the birthing process. They are especially valuable should there be difficulties since they not only offer an extra set of hands, but experience in dealing with common problems. Some of the scientists who were studying amoeba behavior observed some very strange behavior which suggests that some amoebas, too, employ midwives.

The scientists were studying an amoeba that lives in the digestive tract of reptiles. As all amoebas, they reproduce by splitting in half. Scientists noted, however, that this particular species is not very good at it. Up to a third of the time, the amoebas fail to split. They begin the process but never manage to complete it. When that happens, the amoeba is doomed to exist as long as it can with two sets of genetic information. But as scientists watched, when an amoeba had difficulty dividing, other amoebas would move in on it and help the division process, thereby serving as a midwife. Further study revealed that the amoeba having difficulty dividing releases a chemical which apparently summons help to finish the process. The midwife amoeba have been seen traveling up to 40 times their own length to help in the birthing of a new generation.

The Bible teaches us that God cares for all of His creatures. Here we see that He provides even for the needs of the lowly amoeba. How much more does He love us and provide for our needs!

Thank You, Lord, for the helping professions. Help me to see where I can help someone else. Amen.

"Distressed amoebas can call for help," Science News, V. 159, 3/31/01, p. 200.

 

NANOBUGS AMAZE SCIENTISTS

Psalm 139:8

"If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there."
A series of unlikely discoveries has scientists shaking their heads. They have discovered the smallest creatures ever seen three miles below the Earth's surface, happily living where the temperatures go as high as 338 degrees.

The creatures were discovered as part of the Deep Subsurface Microbiology Program. This scientific effort is searching for subsurface microbes which might feed on and break down underground pollutants. At 20 to 150 nanometers in length, they seem too small to be alive. A nanometer is one billionth of a meter. The average human hair is 10,000 nanometers across. Atoms average 3-5 nanometers in size. So a creature only four or five times the size of an atom doesn't seem as though it should be alive. After all, a cell wall is five to seven nanometers thick. DNA alone is five to six nanometers thick. So, with just two cell walls and a little DNA, the smallest of these creatures – called "nanobes" – seem too small to be living creatures. For this reason scientists decided they can't be alive. But after study, scientists have found that these creatures do indeed have DNA and are made of the elements of life – carbon, nitrogen and oxygen. And they do grow like other living things.

Nanobes are another demonstration that nothing is too hard for God, nor is there anywhere He is not. This is a comfort for us since God has spared nothing, including the life of His own Son, to bring about our salvation.

Lord, You can do all things. Let me be comforted by this truth and the truth that You have loved me in Jesus Christ. Amen.

Discover, 1/01. "It's a Small World After All." p. 58.

 

FRIENDSHIP IS NO FRIEND OF EVOLUTION

John 15:13

"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."
It has long been argued that animals do not make friendships. According to evolutionary thinking, animals only make friends among relatives because it benefits another creature that shares the same gene pool. Survival of their gene pool is said to be the driving force for every living creature, although animal knowledge of gene pools is still a mystery!

A detailed study of select animal populations calls this thinking into question. The Atlanta Zoo had two female and one male giraffes. After nine years together without mating, the male was sent to another zoo. This produced much agitated behavior among the females and raised the question: Had these animals developed a friendship? A study was made at the San Diego Zoo where there were 12 giraffes. Among other things, it was found that mother giraffes with young ones often hung around with each other. Certain animals would spend 15 percent of their time with the same giraffe. It was further noted that, among another population of giraffes, certain females were seen with the same female one-third to one-half of the time. Similar signs of friendship have been noted among rhinos, dolphins and even vampire bats.

It would appear that friends are a gift that God has not only given to man, but many of His creatures, and has nothing to do with evolution or gene pools.

Lord, I thank You for the good friends that I have, but most of all I thank You for Your love for me. Amen.

Science News, 11/1: 2003. Susan Milius, "Beast Buddies." pp. 282-284.

 

GENETIC VARIATION CAN FLY

Genesis 8:19

"Every beast, every creeping thing, and every fowl, and whatsoever creepeth upon the earth, after their kinds, went forth out of the ark."
Noah saved a pair of each kind of unclean creature, and seven pairs of every kind of clean creature on the Ark. Generally speaking, the classification of "kind" is broader than today's species. Creationists believe that today's species developed from those creatures, staying within the kind. For example, while there are many species of fruit flies, they are all of the same kind.

But how could all the species we know today have developed so quickly? In 1978, a few European fruit flies were accidentally introduced to Chili. They have now spread their population over much of North America's west coast. In that short time, they differentiated within their kind. For example, those found in more northern latitudes have the longer wingspans, while those in the more southerly latitudes have shorter wingspans. Tests have shown that these differences are due to differences in genetic makeup. Amazingly, the same pattern of longer wing spans in more northerly fruit flies is very much like the pattern observed in European fruit flies. Even more astonishing is the fact that the American fruit flies achieve the longer and short wing spans through the lengthening of a different part of the wing than their European cousins.

That these differences, down to the genetic level, have developed in a mere quarter of a century illustrates how, in the few thousand years since the Flood, the various species we know today could have easily developed from their basic kinds.

Lord, thank You for the variety You have placed in Your creation. Amen.

Creation, 9-11/00. "Fruit flies spread wings." p. 5.

 

 

 

CREATION MOMENTS: 2.11.17

THE HARVESTING ANT

Proverbs 6:6-8

"Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest."
God cares about all of the creatures He has made – even ants. God has invented such incredible ways to provide for them that Bible skeptics often get caught in their own traps!

Those who don't believe the Bible is the Word of God have in the past pointed out an error, as they call it, in Proverbs 6:8. Proverbs 6:6 8 talks about the wisdom of the ant in gathering and storing food for the winter. Skeptics said this must come from some ancient myths about ants because there are no ants known to gather and store food. In the last few years, however, their laughter has stopped. We now know of three different species of ants that gather and store food. And guess what? Two of these species are native to Palestine!

Evolutionists tell us that they are sure the first real human beings weren't even smart enough to gather and store grain and seeds. It is obvious that ants who gather and store grain and seeds are totally unexpected by evolution. But we know that we have a Creator who provides for all the needs of all His creatures – even ants.

The Bible shows itself to be true in all earthly things it tells us about. This is God's way of impressing upon us the accuracy of His Word so that we might believe when it tells us about spiritual things like our Savior, Jesus Christ.

I thank You, Lord, that You have not given us such wonderful brains and then asked us to ignore them and blindly believe. In Your wisdom, You give reasons to believe to those who believe and leave those who refuse deluded by their own wisdom so that they might seek You. Lord, I believe; help my unbelief. Amen.

 

THE GIRAFFE'S WONDER NET

Job 9:10

"Which doeth great things past finding out; yea, and wonders without number."
Did you ever stand up a little too quickly and get dizzy? That happens because by standing you may have temporarily lowered the blood pressure in your brain. Can you imagine what can happen when the giraffe swings his head from the ground to the treetop?

The giraffe's heart and the rest of his cardiovascular system are very different from ours – and from most other creatures. If it weren't different, there wouldn't be any giraffes! In order to get his blood all the way from his heart up that long neck to his brain, the giraffe's heart must produce twice as much blood pressure as would be expected in an animal his height.

But the giraffe's brain is very sensitive to high blood pressure. So giraffes have been given a special structure that's been called the "wonder net", where the blood supply enters his brain. This wonder net keeps the blood pressure in the giraffe's brain just where it should be. Even if the giraffe drops his head quickly – say, from nibbling a treetop to take a drink of water – the blood pressure in his head remains safe. The wonder net can quickly control such rapid changes. And to prevent used blood from draining back into his brain when he lowers his head, the giraffe has a special set of one way check valves in his neck.

When we talk about our Creator, we need not be afraid that some people will think we are talking about worthless things. Truly, the wonders the Creator has made are great and worthy to be told to people far and wide!

Dear Lord Jesus Christ, give us the bold conviction we need to boldly tell others what You have done – from our creation to our salvation. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

"Sticking out his neck." Creation Science Report (Creation Science Research Center, San Diego, CA), July 1974.

 

THE BAT'S SPECIAL RADAR DESIGN

Matthew 6:27-29

"Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these."
If you wake up when it's still dark, you know how overwhelming it can be to turn on the light. Your eyes may even hurt at first. If you've had this experience, you can understand one of the problems that had to be solved when radar was developed.

Basically, radar is made up of two parts. The transmitter sends out a powerful beam of radar waves. But the other part of the radar system is a very sensitive receiver that cannot stand the powerful outgoing signal. One of the major technical problems to be overcome in developing modern radar involved sending out this powerful signal without overwhelming the sensitive receiver. What scientists finally developed was a fast switch that turns the sensitive receiver off every time a radar pulse is sent out.

Bats, who have their own sonic radar, had this problem solved from the beginning. They have muscles in their ears that are the receivers for the echoes. These muscles close the ears for split seconds when the bats are sending out their high pitched signals.

Without this feature, the bat's navigational system would be useless. How could a bat figure out that it needed this ability and then decide to grow the muscles and related tissue to do the job? When one decides to say that creatures, instead of the Creator, have made themselves, one can end up with some very silly conclusions!

Dear Father, You have made all things well and with the good of the creation in mind. Help me to remember this when I tend to think of Your Word as separated from the realities of everyday life, thereby missing out on so many of the blessings You have prepared for me. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

Henson, O.W. 1971. Journal of Physiology, v. 180. p. 871.
AIRBORNE SNAKES

James 4:7

"Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."
One of the things the Hawaiian Islands have been famous for is that they have no snakes. But although there are no friends or relatives for them to visit, increasing numbers of brown tree snakes are catching the next plane to Hawaii.

The snake is native to the Solomon Islands, New Guinea and Australia. Thirty years ago, Guam had no snakes either. Now there are up to 30,000 of the slightly venomous snakes per square mile. They were probably inadvertently carried to Guam by military transport planes. Guam's birds had never seen snakes before and had no natural fear of them. Since brown tree snakes are excellent climbers, most of Guam's bird species were wiped out.

The snakes' love of climbing seems to be their ticket to the Hawaiian Islands. They climb airplane landing gears and make the trip in cargo holds or wheel wells. Two snakes were recently discovered on a runway in Oahu on the same day. One died, but the other was still alive when found. Authorities are worried about more than what the presence of snakes might do to tourism. Hawaii's beautiful tropical birds would be easy pickings for the snakes, just as were the birds in Guam. Experimental snake barriers are now being devised for use at island airports.

God protects His creatures by giving them the ability to recognize their enemies. We need to recognize the disguises of our enemies, too. Our greatest enemy, Satan, has been vanquished by the Son of God, Who took the form of a man for our salvation.

Dear Father in heaven, I thank You that You have told us of the forgiveness of sins that has been won for us by Your Son, Jesus Christ. You have also taught us how to recognize our enemy in Your Word and taught us how to flee him. Amen.

Yoon, Carol Kaesuk. 1992. "Hawaii's military, civilian leaders fear brown tree snake invasion." Minneapolis Star Tribune, July 19. p. 19A.
THE NOT-SO-GENTLE WHALE

Genesis 1:26

"And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth."
Like dinosaurs, whales are huge and wondrous creatures whose sheer size and majesty glorify the Creator. Some whales are even larger than were any of the dinosaurs.

Whales were hunted for generations for processing into a variety of products. It was not until they were hunted to near extinction that governments began to work to prevent this from happening. Much of the hunting was justified on the grounds that whales were ruthless killers. After that perception of whales was proven wrong, the pendulum swung the other way. As a result, the public – and even many scientists – began to romanticize whales. They were presented to the public as gentle, benevolent giants. It became stylish to talk about the whale as an intelligent creature, rivaling and perhaps surpassing humans. Now more objective research into whale behavior shows that whales, while magnificent creatures, are nothing more than wild animals.

Researchers have learned that while whales can be gentle, they can also be terribly violent. They have documented males in vicious battles for the attentions of females. Sometimes as many as 10 males will be involved in a free-for-all. Their fighting tactics include ramming each other at full force with their 40-ton bodies. Whales are not very loyal, either. Males will mate with several females. Worse, they will attack females to force them to mate.

Unlike humans, whales are animals, and only humans were created to have an intimate relationship with their Creator.

I thank You, dear heavenly Father, for making those wondrous creatures – the whales. Help my life to show that I was truly made for an intimate relationship with You through the forgiveness of sins that has been earned for me through the innocent suffering and death of Your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Carpenter, Betsy, with Karen F. Schmidt. 1992. Whales. U.S. News & World Report, July 13. p. 58.

 

 

 

CREATION MOMENTS: 2.3.17

GOD'S MIND, HUMAN MIND

Isaiah 55:8

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD."
It was only a few years ago that excited supporters of the big bang theory for the origin of the universe announced that their theory had apparently been proven. Now their unverified conclusions are being seriously questioned on several fronts.

Even as it was being announced that the big bang theory was proven, verification was being made on other results showing that the big bang theory is probably wrong. William G. Tifft of the University of Arizona had been looking at lists of red shifts from distant galaxies. On a graph, he plotted the red shifts corrected for the effects of the Earth's motion. If the red shifts from these objects are the result of their speeding away from Earth, their red shifts should be evenly spread over the known range of shifts. Tifft found that they're not. The red shifts are clumped into patterns. The intervals are about 72 kilometers per second, with some half that value and some one-third of that value. Astronomers from the Royal Observatory in Edinburgh verified his results.

A second study by Tifft has shown that galaxy red shifts measured from Earth have changed in just a few years! This change is completely unexpected by proponents of the big bang theory. The change is large enough that Tifft expects to be able to test the rate at which these changes take place within only a few years! One suggestion is that red shifts may be some sort of decay phenomenon rather than expansion of the universe.

How could human beings expect to understand a universe created by the Author of Scripture when they reject Scripture itself?

I thank You, dear Lord, for the revelation of Your Word of salvation in Scripture. I pray that I may never presume to understand something before I know and believe what You have said about it in Your inerrant Word. Amen.

 

RACCOON BEAR?

Romans 1:24-25

"Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen."
In creation, things aren't always as simple as they seem. Even before Charles Darwin, scientists who believed in evolution classified plants and animals by appearance. A story about the creature's evolutionary history would be invented, based on its appearance and, sometimes, its habits. However, God is too creative for this kind of attempt to write Him out of history.

This background information helps us understand the problem of the giant and lesser pandas. Are they related to bears? Are they related to raccoons? Or neither? Evolutionary scientists have been debating this for more than a century. They were sure the giant and lesser pandas should be grouped together because of similarities in their teeth. And even though the giant panda looks like a bear, it doesn't hibernate. Nor does it roar – it has a very unbear-like bleat, like a lamb.

Modern molecular biology has now investigated the panda question. DNA and proteins from greater and lesser pandas were examined and compared. Researchers arrived at a startling conclusion, based on what they knew about raccoon and bear DNA and proteins. The greater panda is a bear. The lesser panda is not a bear, but is related to the raccoon.

In their rush to deny the Creator, humans built huge claims out of tiny amounts of information. It is, in fact, much easier to see the greater and lesser pandas as unique creatures that have come from the hand of our imaginative Creator.

I thank You, Lord, for the wonderful creatures we call pandas. In addition, I thank You that they witness to Your creativity and confound those who wish to deny You. Protect these creatures so that we may always enjoy them. Amen.

"Panda pedigree: giant and lesser." Science News, v. 128, p. 216.

 

FROG PHARMACISTS

Matthew 13:22

"He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful."
Some frogs are regular little drug factories. Their skins produce a wide range of powerful alkaloids, which are a large family of chemicals usually produced by plants. Familiar alkaloids include quinine, caffeine and morphine. Different alkaloids have different effects, usually on the nervous system.

The poison-arrow frog may be the most famous alkaloid-producing frog. South American natives simply rub their arrows or darts on the frog's back. One species of this frog contains enough poison to kill 100 people! Another frog, native to Ecuador, produces an anesthetic more powerful than morphine. South American natives rub another frog on their wounds. Researchers discovered that the frog's skin makes a powerful antiseptic. Yet another frog alkaloid will change the colors on parrot feathers. Some of the alkaloids produced by frogs are so complex that it takes years of study, using modern science's most sophisticated equipment, to discover the active chemical.

Researchers in this field are only beginning to learn about the alkaloids produced by frogs. They have yet to research a frog that natives claim to use to heighten their senses for the hunt. What puzzles scientists who believe in evolution is that the frogs' exotic skin chemistries don't follow the patterns they anticipated based upon expected evolutionary relationships.

This means that these frogs have one more exciting purpose. They provide evidence against evolution and for the Creator.

I thank You, Lord, that You have included chemicals in the creation that can help us treat our medical problems. I ask that I would not become so concerned with earthly cares and worries that I forget about my spiritual needs – which are fully supplied by You. Amen.

Pennisi, Elizabeth. 1992. "Pharming frogs." Science News, v. 142, July 18. p. 40.

 

 

SCIENCE CONFRONTS MEDITATION CLAIMS

Psalm 119:148

"Mine eyes prevent the night watches, that I might meditate in thy word."
Many people promote meditation as harmless and healthful. Of course, growing interest in meditation cannot be separated from the increased popularity of Eastern and New Age religion.

However, many don't place the claims that Eastern meditation reduces stress in the same category as the magical New Age claims made for crystals. Unfortunately, even children in public schools go through Eastern meditation exercises.

Eastern meditation has often been recommended as one treatment for hypertension. However, no one had ever studied these medical claims to see if they were true. Then the results of such a study were published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Government researchers had studied effects of Eastern meditation on more than 2,100 men and women with high blood pressure. They concluded that it is ineffective in lowering blood pressure. Yes, it is true that there are changes in the brain waves of someone who is meditating. However, brain waves normally change when one type of mental activity replaces another. Nor is Eastern meditation a particularly good choice to produce brain waves associated with mental peace.

Eastern meditation is not harmless. It can open the mind to negative influences. And claims that it can reduce the effects of stress have been scientifically shown to be untrue. Let's return to our Bible and say with the Psalmist, "My eyes are awake through the night watches, that I may meditate on Your word."

I thank You, dear Father, that You have given us Your sure Word in Scripture and the Word made flesh for our salvation. Increase my eagerness to meditate on Your Word. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

"20 medical stories you may have missed." U.S. News & World Report, Aug. 3, 1992. p. 58.

 

 TOUCHING LOVE

2 Corinthians 13:11

"Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you."
Love is one of the necessities of life that is both physical and spiritual. While it doesn't fit with a strictly materialistic view of life, love and touch – or lack of love and touch – can determine our health and sometimes even life and death.

The claim that love and touch are necessary to life and health was considered so outrageous that it wasn't until relatively recently that scientists began to test such claims. Researchers selected 40 hospitalized infants. These infants were not in intensive care, on oxygen or intravenous feedings, but they were too tiny to leave the hospital. Researchers randomly selected half the group for attention. These infants were touched for three 15-minute periods a day. The first five minutes were spent stroking the infants' bodies. The next five minutes were spent lightly moving the infants' arms and legs. This was followed by five more minutes of stroking.

Even though the infants often didn't seem to notice the attention, it made a difference. After only 10 days of this attention, the stroked infants had gained 47 percent more weight than the infants who were ignored. This is especially amazing considering that the infants who gained less weight had been fed the same number of calories. The stroked infants were also more active, so they should have actually metabolized more of the calories and lost weight rather than increasing in weight.

Can we literally live on love? Well, we do need food and other things, but we also need love – especially from our Creator.

Father in heaven, I thank You that You have loved me and sent Your Son, Jesus Christ, to carry my burden of sin and guilt on the cross. Never let me doubt Your forgiveness, and continually assure me of Your forgiving love – for I know that this is where peace is found. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

Bower, Bruce. 1985. "Different strokes." Science News, v. 128, Nov. 9. p. 301.