Daily Devotional – June 21

Paleontology

The following commentary on the fossil record appeared in World Magazine:

Darwin, while not having the benefit of cellular technology that is available to scientists today, did recognize that the fossil record posed a problem. He wrote, “Why then is not every geological formation and every stratum full of such intermediate links? Geology assuredly does not reveal any such finely graduated organic chain, and this, perhaps, is the most obvious and gravest objection which can be raised against my theory.” 2 Unfortunately for Darwinists, the fossil record still does not support evolution, but it does fit [a biblical viewpoint].

Jonathan Wells, a biologist who holds Ph.D. degrees from both Yale University and the University of California, Berkeley, has written a book, Icons of Evolution, which demonstrates that much of what is taught about evolution is wrong or even fraudulent. Wells notes, “Although the abrupt appearance of animal fossils in the Cambrian [period] was known to Darwin, the full extent of the phenomenon wasn’t appreciated until the 1980s.” 3 He further notes, “The fossil evidence is so strong, and the event so dramatic, that it has become known as the ‘Cambrian explosion,’ or ‘biology’s big bang.’” 4 Thus, the fossil record does not support the theory that living things developed gradually over long periods of time, but instead appeared rather abruptly in their present form. Henry Gee, chief science writer for Nature, is quoted by Wells as saying, “To take a line of fossils and claim that they represent a lineage is not a scientific hypothesis that can be tested, but an assertion that carries the same validity as a bedtime story—amusing, perhaps even instructive, but not scientific.”

Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

~ Colossians 2:8

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

References for this devotional.

Daily Devotional – June 20

Biology

Have you heard of the boxer crab? It carries around pom poms like a high school cheerleader - but its pom poms are deadly sea anemones. The crab uses these anemones to sting small animals in order to eat them. The sea anemones then share in the meal. This is a mutually beneficial (symbiotic) relationship. The tiny boxer crab, measuring only one inch across, would be an easy lunch without the protection of the stinging sea anemones. The threat of a one-two punch from the sea anemone’s “pom poms” is enough to scare most predators away. If the predator is not scared away, the stinging cells on the sea anemone’s tentacles have enough poison to kill small animals – now the predator is lunch! God in His wisdom knew that boxer crabs and sea anemones would need each other and so designed this symbiotic relationship to benefit each animal.

He is wise in heart, and mighty in strength: who hath hardened himself against him, and hath prospered?

~ Job 9:4

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

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Daily Devotional – June 19

Botany

Why are trees round and not square? If we had a square tree, think of all the time and effort we would save when sawing them into lumber! Let’s pause and think, why our Creator made trees round and not square?

1. Wood layers grow outward from the center in all directions.
2. Cylinders provide maximum strength against stresses in all directions.
3. Round trees can bend more easily than square-sided trees when a wind is blowing.
4. Round trees can bend in all directions; square trees would be more vulnerable to breaking at the corners.

The best design for trees is round; if that were not true, telephone poles and light posts would be square and not round. Sometimes, we overlook what is so common in nature, like why a tree is round. But when we stop and consider it, we see a wonderful design that gives glory to our Creator.

All the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord

~ Numbers 14:21

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

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Daily Devotional – June 18

Anatomy

In the late 1800s, after Darwin proposed his theory of life’s slow evolutionary development, nearly 200 organs were considered “useless” – that is, unnecessary leftovers from our evolutionary past. The gallbladder was considered one of these “useless” leftovers. Does the gallbladder have a necessary function?

Recently, my husband had a terrible pain in his side. An ultra-sound test identified the cause of the pain to be gallstones blocking the exit duct from his gallbladder. The gallbladder is a small, pear-shaped organ on the right side just beneath the liver. This human organ stores bile, which is made in the liver. One job of the gallbladder is to release this bile, into the small intestine as needed. This bile is used for the breakdown and absorption of fatty foods. If the gallbladder is removed, the bile oozes continually into the intestines. If an overly fatty meal is eaten, not enough bile will be released, causing incomplete digestion - resulting in gas, bloating, and diarrhea.

It is possible to adjust our diet such that we can function without the gallbladder, but it is far better to keep it. A person without a gallbladder needs to be a little more careful in the consumption of fatty food. But that hardly implies the organ is a worthless evolutionary leftover. Isn’t it interesting how our wise Creator God knew we would have problems with our deteriorating bodies and designed them to cope with a wide variety of dietary circumstances? God doesn’t make “useless” parts; the gallbladder is needed.

Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us,.…

~ Psalm 100:3

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

References for this devotional.

Daily Devotional – June 17

Christian Truth

Over twenty years ago, scientists first cloned a large mammal (a sheep named Dolly in 1996). Cloning is a process where the donor’s DNA is removed from the nucleus of a cell. The recipient’s fertilized egg DNA is removed and replaced with the donor’s DNA. The egg is then placed within the recipient’s womb. This will make an exact biological replica of the donor creature rather than the offspring being a blend of the characteristics of both the mother and father. Scientists have greatly improved their ability to clone creatures over the last twenty years, but it is still illegal in most countries to attempt to make exact replicas (i.e. clones) of ourselves. Why is this illegal, and if we could make an exact copy of ourselves, would such a person have a soul and be fully human? To answer such questions, one must consult an absolute source of truth outside of human opinion.

Let’s answer the last question. There is already a model for whether exact biological duplicates of human beings will have separate souls. Identical twins come from the DNA code of one egg that divides in such a way that two biologically identical human beings result. Yet, no-one would deny that, even though their DNA is identical, they are two separate people, having two different personalities, lives, and souls. In a similar way, a human clone, should we ever be foolish enough to monkey with God’s created biological machinery in order to produce one, would also have a soul and be accountable to God for his existence. Also, the process of cloning involves the killing of dozens, and sometimes thousands, of fertilized embryos in the effort to successfully produce one viable clone. This is why human cloning is and should be illegal. The entire process is a flagrant disregard for life and is the ultimate in dishonoring and ignoring our Creator - to whom all life owes its existence.

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.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him ; male and female created he them.

~ Genesis 1:26, 27 emphasis added

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

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Daily Devotional – June 16

Biology

The Texas horned toad is found all over the western United States. It has a stubby nose, horns on its head, spikes all over its body and tail. It may look dangerous to us, but it is friendly. If you are a predator, the horned toad displays a full arsenal of defensive weapons. When frightened, the horned toad first flattens itself to the ground and freezes, not moving a muscle. If a predator continues to approach, it runs with short bursts and then stops quickly - repeating as necessary. If the predator is still pursuing, it will blow itself up to be twice its size. And then there is the final trick; the toad can shoot a stream of blood out of its eyeball up to five feet away! He can even aim this blood stream! He can do this 2-3 times. The blood tastes nasty, so any coyote, snake, or roadrunner that wants to mess with a Texas horned toad has to be ready!

Imagine if we were to burst an artery in our eye, it would take a long time for it to heal, and it would likely leave scar tissue. Not so with the horned toad. It can shoot blood again and again without permanent harm. What if it took millions of years to develop this ability? The horned toad would have probably been eaten. No other animal can squirt blood out of its eyes. We have an imaginative Creator who is concerned for even a small, cold-blooded lizard’s protection. We have a Creator that makes amazing creatures!

For the Lord is great, and greatly to be praised:….

~ Psalm 96:4

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

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Daily Devotional – June 15

History

Have you considered that there are ancient depictions of dinosaurs in artwork from around the world? Ancient civilizations called these creatures “dragons” because the word dinosaur was not invented until 1841. In his book Dire Dragons, Vance Nelson documents many examples of this artwork throughout the world. These are but a few:

• On Bishop Bell’s tomb (1496) in Carlisle England, there is a brass plate on the floor of the Carlisle Cathedral showing two sauropods with their necks intertwined.
• On the back of a clergy chair at St. David’s Cathedral in Wales, there is a dragon which looks startlingly like a sauruopod found in Argentina known as Brachytrachelopan mesai.
• The Chateau Royal de Blois in France has 16th century carvings of a Plateosaurus dinosaur.
• Above the fireplace of the Azay-le-Rideau castle in France is a 16^th century carving of a dragon that looks remarkably like modern depictions of dinosaurs. Also, a beautiful table has one of its drawers carved with a dragon/dinosaur.
• St. George’s Chapel in Barcelona, Spain, “Palau de La Generalitat,” has an altar cloth from the 1600s showing St. George slaying a dragon/dinosaur.

Artwork from Medieval Europe supports the fact that man and dinosaurs did live together.

Praise the Lord from the earth, ye dragons, and all deeps:

~ Psalm 148:7

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

References for this devotional.

Daily Devotional – June 14

Biology

How does an octopus change the color of its skin to match his surroundings in the blink of an eye? Below the top layer of protective skin, an octopus has three more layers (chromatophore layers) with thousands of tiny, balloon-like sacs filled with different pigment colors. The top layer of chromatophores has black and brown colored sacs, the middle layer has red and orange colored sacs, and the third layer has yellow colored sacs. Nerves and muscles cause the balloon-like sacs to expand and contract. When the sac expands, the color in that layer becomes more visible, and when contracted, the color becomes less visible. But the octopus camouflage system is even more complex. The fifth layer down is filled with iridophores, which are reflecting plates that give the octopus iridescent golds, silvers, blues and greens. The sixth or bottom layer contains leucophores, which mirror back colors from any surrounding environments.

Octopus skin has inspired researchers to develop a high-tech camouflage fabric. So far, the fabric can automatically shift between white and black as well as making shades of gray. One of the engineers noted that, “…looking at moves of squid, octopuses, and cuttlefish, you just (realize) that you’re not going to get close to that level of sophistication.” This engineer knows the difficulty of making such a fabric. When man tries to copy what has already been made but cannot even come close, we must stand in awe of the original design Engineer, God, Himself!

Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice: and let men say among the nations, The Lord reigneth. Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof: let the fields rejoice, and all that is therein.

~ 1 Chronicles 16: 31-32

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

References for this devotional.

Daily Devotional – June 13

Paleontology

How long does it take a fossil to form? People are conditioned to think about millions of years and evolution whenever they hear the word “fossil.” But is this really a valid conclusion or just storytelling?

Near York, England is the Dripping Well of Yorkshire. This place is famous for turning soft cuddly teddy bears into stone. Since the 1600’s, this has been a tourist attraction where people have hung clothes, hats, shoes, and, yes, even teddy bears under a waterfall that has turned each into stone.

The waterfall’s water originates underground and has an extremely high mineral content. As the water splashes onto the hanging objects, the mineral calcite (calcium carbonate) is deposited along with small amounts of other minerals. Over the months, these deposits build up and coat the object with a crust of rock. Petrifaction time depends on the size and porosity of the object. Small teddy bears turn to stone in three to five months. Larger teddy bears take six to twelve months.

This is not the only place in the world where petrifaction has been observed. Australia has its own petrified waterwheel that has become totally encased in stone in only decades, while New Zealand has a petrified bowler hat on display. It does not take millions of years for petrifaction; it just takes the right conditions.

Thou coverest it with the deep as with a garment: the waters stood above the mountains. At thy rebuke they fled; at the voice of thy thunder they hasted away.

~ Psalm 104:6,7

Daily Devotional – June 12

Biblical Accuracy

The continued existence of the Jewish people is one of the most amazing, fulfilled prophecies of the Bible. About 4,000 years ago, God called a man named Abram out of his country to a promised land. God promised that a great nation of innumerable people would come from him and changed his name to Abraham - even though he was almost 100 years old and childless. Two hundred and fifteen years later, Abraham’s descendants settled in Egypt. While in Egypt, Abraham’s descendants increased greatly - numbering in the millions within 500 years of Abraham’s death. As they were returning to the Promised Land, Moses gave them many warnings about the consequences of being disobedient to God (see Deuteronomy chapters 28-33).

Because of their rebellion, they were again banished from their homeland in 70 A.D. The Romans destroyed the city of Jerusalem and scattered the Jewish people. For almost 1900 years, the Jews wandered the Earth. This culminated in the Holocaust of World War II. In 1948, the state of Israel was reborn, and many Jews returned to their homeland. Throughout this entire time, the Jewish people never lost their national identity. History has shown that people who leave their homeland will lose their national identity within five generations - being absorbed into the new culture. Have you ever heard a person say, “I’m a Moabite, or I’m a Philistine? Ammonite? Edomite?” These were the nations that lived around Israel. Obviously, they have not survived. Yet for the past 4000 years, people have continued to say, “I’m Jewish” or “I’m an Israelite.” God is faithful to fulfill what He says!

And I will make of thee a great nation;

~ Genesis 12:2a

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

References for this devotional.