Daily Devotional – April 3

Geology

Rock layers (strata) show much more evidence for rapid formation than evidence for formation over eons of time. Here are some evidences for rapid formation of rock strata:

• Polystrate fossils, like fossilized tree trunks running through multiple rock layers (supposedly millions of years old) had to have formed rapidly. If it did not happen quickly the trunks would have rotted away as they waited for the next layer to be laid down.
• Ripple marks and footprints in rocks are delicate surface features preserved on underlying rock units. If there were millions of years between layers, these delicate features should be gone. Think of an animal footprint in mud being undisturbed for years - even that is impossible.
• Lack of soil layers in rock strata.
• Lack of erosion features in rock layers. If there were millions of years between the layers, there should be gullies and other erosion features everywhere we look.

The rock layers (strata) that we see today were laid down during the year-long Flood of Noah’s time. The rock layers testify that God’s word is true about the world-wide Flood.

And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights.…And the waters prevailed upon the earth an hundred and fifty days.…And the waters decreased continually until the tenth month….

~ Genesis 7:12, 24; 8:5

Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett

References for this devotional.

Daily Devotional – April 2

Biology

Have you ever tried to hold onto a slimy, slippery fish? It is very difficult. Now imagine birds that primarily eat fish, such as penguins or loons, trying to hold onto a fish! These birds are designed with unique backward pointing spines on their tongue and the roof of their mouth. These spines hold onto the slippery fish, and as the fish wiggles, the spines force the fish further down the throat. The spines act like a conveyor belt, moving the fish into the bird’s throat and down to the stomach.

As the loon hunts for fish, it swims along with its eyes just below the surface. Upon spotting a  school of fish, it dives and chases the fish. Loons can dive as deep as 200 feet and hold their breath for as long as 10 minutes! When the loon gets close to the fish, it thrusts its head forward and grabs the fish. The loon has no problem holding onto the fish and swallowing it because of the backward pointing projections in its mouth. Interestingly, the fish can only be swallowed head first because the fish’s scales only allow them to slide forward in that direction. When we see special designs, like spines on a bird’s tongue and the roof of its mouth, we know there must be a Designer! God thought of all the details, even holding onto a slimy fish.

I will meditate also of all thy work, and talk of thy doings.

~ Psalm 77: 12

Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett

References for this devotional.

Daily Devotional – April 1

Christian Truth

Imagine a student coming into his teacher’s office and declaring that he did not believe that oxygen existed. Before the teacher could even respond, the student bursts forth with a long series of justifications for his conclusion starting with the fact that “no-one had ever seen an oxygen molecule” and the question, “where would this molecule come from?”

A good teacher would not get defensive and go into an insulting tirade against such a student. The teacher would be confident in the truth and would lead the deceived student to the truth with patience and logic.

In the same way, evolutionists are like the student, insisting that everything can be explained without the existence of God. God has repeatedly stated that it is the evidence from creation that testifies to His existence (Roman 1:18-31). The very fact that rational thoughts are possible proves the existence of a Creator. Our minds have been purposefully created. We are not random arrangements of chemicals. Otherwise, our thoughts are just chemicals and electricity zipping around our brain randomly. If I were to have you think of a pink elephant and then cut your skull open, would I find a pink elephant there? No, a pink elephant is a thought while your brain is a physical structure. You are body and soul. Where did this soul come from? God. There is a God who reveals Himself through what He has made. To those who have been taken captive by the philosophy of this world, we need to be patient and explain the truth.

Who hath put wisdom in the inward parts? Or who hath given understanding to the heart?

~ Job 38:36

Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett

References for this devotional.

Daily Devotional – March 31

Paleontology

Soft tissue found in dinosaur bones has been found in over a dozen documented examples. Laboratory studies indicate that soft tissue decays within about 1 YEAR, and it is known that even the most stable biological proteins would break down within 30,000 YEARS. So how do evolutionists explain soft tissue within fossilized bones - yet still hang on to their belief that these bones are over 65 million years old?

According to research results from evolutionist, Dr. Mary Schweitzer (the discoverer of the original soft tissue found in a T-rex fossil reported in a 2005 paper), iron from our blood can bond to tissue immediately after death and decrease the decay rate of biological tissue by orders of magnitude. Dr. Schweitzer used TOTALLY unrealistic conditions in her experiments.

Dr. Mark Armitage is a creationist who was fired from the University of California in 2013 after publishing the implications of his discovery of soft tissue in a Triceratops horn (found in the Hell Creek formation in Montana). He makes the following observations about Dr. Schweitzer’s latest paper, “There is no way the iron could have preserved the tissues (blood vessels) which Schweitzer is talking about because blood clots within 20 minutes [locking up any available iron]…iron could not have preserved the soft BONE sheets I found because they are in impermeable bone and they never come in contact with the blood. PLUS Schweitzer used an ANTICOAGULANT in her experiment and separated all the other blood products in order to isolate and highly concentrate the iron. She also kept it sterile (i.e., no fungi, microbes, plants, water, ice) which is way different from [any natural conditions]...”

In other words, evolutionists start with the assumption that the huge time periods are true and then manipulate experiments to get the results they desire - even though such conditions or experiments in no way reflects reality. They then present the findings as proof that the huge time periods are true. This type of research is poor science. We need to do good science and go wherever the facts lead us. Soft tissue in dinosaurs is puzzling for evolutionists but not for Christians. Finding many examples of soft dinosaur tissue means they died in the recent past.

Behold now behemoth, which I made with thee;….

~ Job 40:15

“April hath put a spirit of youth in everything.”

~ William Shakespeare (1564-1616), poet, playwright, actor

“the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; the flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come…”

~ Song of Solomon 2:11, 12

Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett

References for this devotional.

Daily Devotional – March 30

Geology

Earthquakes are movements of the earth; huge plates of rock can move sideways or slide vertically. Modern earthquake movements have seen land masses move the land as much as 30 feet, resulting in enormous damage. Compare this with the earthquakes during the Flood; many moved large chunks of the land 2 miles or more at a time! What havoc this would have caused!

When an earthquake happens underwater, a tsunami is formed. In an open ocean, a boat on the surface would experience a gentle movement upward. But once this tsunami reaches a shallow shoreline, the water builds up creating a wall of water. The tsunami that hit Japan, in March 2011, displaced the water below the ocean bottom about 30 feet - creating a 124 foot wave, which crashed onto the shore and killed some 15,000 people. Now imagine the tsunamis during the Flood with earth movements of 10,000 feet! The resulting tsunamis would pulverize EVERYTHING in its path and cover entire continents. Imagine a wall of water dwarfing the tallest building on earth! Earthquakes during the Flood would have been unstoppably destructive. The safest place to be during the Flood would have been on the Ark in the middle of the ocean. The Flood of the ancient world was truly a horrific event!

And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly;...The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations….

~ 2 Peter 2:5, 9

Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett

References for this devotional.

Daily Devotional – March 29

Geology

The Roberts family bought the famous Belle Tout lighthouse at Beachy Head, UK, in 1996 as a bed and breakfast. At that time, it was 300 feet from the high chalk cliffs. Four years later, the couple fled in the middle of the night as the cliff started to fall away leaving the lighthouse precariously perched just 10 feet from the edge. On average, six inches of the cliff erode away every year, keeping the white cliffs white by preventing shrubs, grasses, and trees from growing. Most people don’t realize that significant erosion is happening along coastlines. In recent history entire, English coastline villages have been lost into the ocean.

On the Outer Banks of North Carolina, USA, Cape Hatteras Lighthouse was built in 1872 and sat about 1,800 feet from the shore. In just 130 years, the coastline had eroded 1,680 feet such that the light house sat only 120 feet from the sea. The lighthouse has since been moved. The amount of coastal erosion we observe does not match the evolutionary timeline, but it is consistent with the Bible’s timeline. About 4400 years ago, there was a global flood, and the continents’ coastlines have been eroding ever since. Coastal erosion is a worldwide problem, causing beaches to vanish and houses to toppling. Fast coastal erosion points to the world being young.

And the earth shall wax old like a garment,….

~ Isaiah 51:6b

Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett

References for this devotional.

Daily Devotional – March 28

Design

In November 1974, as a jumbo jet took off from the Nairobi airport, the plane shuddered violently, stalled, crashed to the ground and broke into pieces. The pilots had forgotten to deploy the slats on the leading edge of the wings that allow a plane to fly at much lower speeds without stalling. The development of this leading edge slat to help with landing and take offs has been a key factor in modern aviation. And guess what? Birds deploy such a wing slat on the front edge of their wings just as jumbo jets do! Large birds, like the steppe eagle, use this front slat (alula or bastard wing) to prevent them from stalling during landing. Such design did not happen by accident and chance, either in the jumbo jet or these large birds. Clearly, there is a Designer behind this “leading edge” technology.

They shall mount up with wings as eagles….

~ Isaiah 40:31

Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett

References for this devotional.

Daily Devotional – March 27

History

The dodo bird was a strange bird. These large, flightless birds lived on an island in the Indian Ocean. Sailors found this bird so easy to catch and eat that by 1662, it was extinct. No one seemed to notice. Decades later, scientists did not believe that the dodo ever existed. It was widely believed that legends of such a bird were pure myth. Just think about the evidence:

1. A strange creature
2. No one can find one in existence
3. Nothing but old accounts, fanciful drawings and vague descriptions

The dodo might still be considered a prehistoric animal or myth had it not been for a few dodo specimens found in the basements of museum collections. By the 19th century, scientists realized the dodo was a real bird that became extinct. There is a stuffed dodo bird on display in the Prague Museum of Natural History today.

In the same way, consider dragons:

1. A strange animal
2. No one can find one in existence
3. Nothing but old accounts, fanciful drawings and vague descriptions

But there is a significant difference between the dragon and dodo evidence. There are massive numbers of dragon accounts, drawings and descriptions from around the world. Many of these dragon descriptions fit a creature that we know by a different name – dinosaur. Dragons (dinosaurs) were considered real creatures for over 4000 years of human history. It was not until the 20th century that we began to teach that any firsthand human knowledge of dragons/dinosaurs was a myth. Dragons living after the Flood could have become extinct through environmental changes, man killing them off, or many other reasons.

Most dragon legends speak of dragons as viciously attacking and then being killed. In Scriptures (Revelation 12:3), Satan is portrayed as a vicious dragon. If dragons were a myth, then the description of Satan being a dragon would also be mythological. Satan wants people to deny his existence. This idea, that dragons are only a myth and not real, could be just another attack on God and His Word. Dragons were real creatures that went extinct - just like the dodo.

And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.

~ Revelation 12:3

Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett

References for this devotional.

Daily Devotional – March 26

Biology

Lest you think everything to be discovered has already been discovered, a recent examination of whales has revealed a previously unknown organ – completely different from any other structure found throughout the animal kingdom. Researchers studying blue whale carcasses in Iceland used MRI scans to identify this unique fluid-filled sac (the size of a small cushion) within their chins. This new organ helps the blue whale coordinate its mouth movements during lunge feeding.

Blue whales are the largest creatures on the earth and feed by lunging through the water. At just the right moment, they open their mouths so wide that they screech to a halt like a drag-racer deploying a parachute. Before they come to a stop, they gulp enormous amounts of water filled with krill (shrimp-like creatures). Whales swallow the equivalent of their enormous body mass (400,000 pounds) of water with each gulp. For many years, scientists have wondered how they coordinate their jaw movement in order to capture and filter the krill so efficiently.

The newly discovered organ within their mouths has provided the answer. This organ contains millions of microscopic, finger-like nerve structures and blood vessels that change shape as the jaw moves. This enables the mouth to open extra wide at just the right moment. But here is the most amazing example of modern man’s intellectual blindness. Because the nerves from this newly discovered organ go through the jaw cavity to the whale’s brain, these researchers attribute the existence of this organ to “a tooth socket earlier in whale evolution”! In other words, they would rather believe that a toothache turned into a complex organ (with absolutely no evidence to support such wild speculation) than to acknowledge that the existence of the blue whale, with all of its intricate design, involved a Creator.

We all need to stand back and marvel at God’s detailed handiwork. O Lord God, thou hast begun to shew thy servant thy greatness, and thy mighty hand: for what God is there in heaven or in earth, that can do according to thy works, and according to thy might?

~ Deuteronomy 3:24

Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett

References for this devotional.

Daily Devotional – March 25

Design

Today, there is great concern over football players receiving concussions. Have you thought about the woodpecker banging its head against a tree trunk? Why doesn’t a woodpecker get a concussion or brain damage? On average, he bangs his head 12,000 times a day, each time reaching speeds of 13-15 mph. As he pecks, his beak stops abruptly when it hits the wood. The deceleration force has been measured to be 1,200 times the acceleration of gravity (1200 g). Decelerating one’s heads at just 300 g would leave a person with serious brain injury or a concussion. Through slow motion footage, x-ray images, tomography, and CT scans, scientists discovered four features that enable the woodpecker to sustain this type of head-banging existence:

1. The beak is made of an elastic material.2. The woodpecker’s hyoid bone is different than a human’s. It loops around the entire skull, acting like a seat belt. In a human, this
2. bone sits just above the “Adam’s apple”.
3. The spongy bone behind the beak and at different places in the skull act as shock absorbers.
4. A special skull bone contains spinal fluid.

Researchers emphatically claim that all four of these features have to be present at the same time in order for the woodpecker not to destroy his brain. Evolution says that these four features would have come about by accident and chance over millions of years. If this is true, would we have woodpeckers? All four special design features needed to be present from the beginning in order for the impact force to be spread throughout the skull.

One last amazing fact - every time the woodpecker hits a tree, his eyes close simultaneously – otherwise his eyeballs would pop out of his skull! Of course, learning to close his eyes simultaneously with hitting his head against the tree also needed to work the first time, or we would have lots of blind woodpeckers. God is an amazing designer of woodpeckers!

For thou art great, and doest wondrous things: thou art God alone.

~ Psalm 86:10

Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett

References for this devotional.