Creation Devotional August 13 - Biology
Daily Devotional – August 13
Biology
Did you know that the lampsillis mussel has its own fishing lure? These mussels live in streams and lakes. When it is time to send out its larvae, it pushes part of its soft body out of its shell. This fleshy mantle mimics a little minnow – it even has “eyes.” The lure movement is also astonishingly like a live minnow, even gulping with its mouth.
When a “host fish.” a largemouth bass, comes close to the mussel and “takes the bait.” the mussel shoots a cloud of larvae into the fish’s mouth where they clamp onto its gills. Here the larvae stay for weeks sucking the blood from the host fish; finally, they drop off when they are large enough to survive as adult mussels.
How can a mussel evolve the right lure for the host fish? How can a mussel that has no eyes know what the lure needs to look like or when a bass will come to its lure? If the mussel did not shoot its larvae into the host fish, then it would go extinct. Throwing the word like “evolution” at this amazing process does not explain how it could have developed. It had to be designed to work the way it did from the beginning, or it would not work at all.
And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen.
~ Psalm 72:19
Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett
References for this devotional.
Creation Devotional August 12 - History
Daily Devotional – August 12
History
What do Australian Aborigines and people of India have in common? Apparently, they are related. Recent genetic testing found strong DNA similarities between them. The large number of similar genetic markers across the genome gives a clear signal that the people of India and Australia intermarried 4,000 - 5,000 years ago. This would also help explain the many linguistic similarities between the peoples of southern India and many of the Aboriginal tribes. How is this viewed from a biblical perspective? After the Flood of Noah’s time, the people built a tower of Babel and then were dispersed (Genesis 10, 11). The dispersion of the people from the tower of Babel may have happened several hundred years after the Flood (over 4,000 years ago). As a result, some groups of people would have settled in India, and others traveled further on to Australia. Modern DNA testing confirms this migration and the corresponding dates. Science finally catches up with the Bible.
Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.
~ Genesis 11:9
Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett
References for this devotional.
Creation Devotional August 11 - Biblical Accuracy
Daily Devotional – August 11
Biblical Accuracy
Dr. Duane Gish, author of Dinosaurs by Design, documents a few of more than 270 stories from various cultures around the world that talk about a devastating worldwide flood. Here are just a few examples:
- Hawaii – Long after the death of the first man, Kuniuhonna, the world became a wicked, terrible place to live. There was one good man left; his name was Nu-u. He made a great canoe with a house on it and filled it with animals. The waters came up over all the Earth and killed all the people. Only Nu-u and his family were saved.
- China – Fuhi is considered the “father of their civilization,” Fuhi, his wife, three sons, and three daughters escaped a great flood. He and his family were the only people left alive on Earth. After the great flood, they repopulated the Earth.
- Babylonia – Ancient documents list 10 great kings that lived before a great flood came to destroy the Earth. One man survived this flood, and all people on Earth descended from this one man.
- Toltec – The Toltec Indians of Mexico tell of a “first world” that lasted for 1716 years before a great flood covered even the highest mountains. A few men escaped this flood in a “closed chest.” Following the flood, the men built a great tower to provide safety. Their languages, however, were confused and they wandered to other parts of the world.
- Genesis- God sent a worldwide Flood to judge the sinfulness of man. One righteous family of eight was saved by building a boat and bringing animals on board. At the end of the Flood, the boat rested on top of a high mountain. They came down from the mountain and repopulated the world.
All of the 270 cultural stories have similarities to the Genesis Flood account described in the Bible because they all came from the same original source – people’s knowledge of this real event. The stories just became distorted over time.
And Noah went forth, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons’ wives with him: Every beast, every creeping thing, and every fowl, and whatsoever creepeth upon the earth, after their kinds, went forth out of the ark.
~ Genesis 8:18-19
Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett
References for this devotional.
Creation Devotional August 10 - Biology
Daily Devotional – August 10
Biology
Who cleans up the seal and penguin colonies? The snowy sheathbill bird. This white bird looks like a cross between a pigeon and domesticated hen and is widespread across the Antarctica region. It hangs out in the seal and penguin colonies during breeding season. What we think is disgusting, they think is delicious.
Sheathbills eat dead seals, penguins and their droppings. These birds are the clean-up crew, making the colony a healthier place. By removing dead animals, these birds limit the spread of diseases. God’s attention to every detail of life is apparent in His creative details for making healthy seal and penguin colonies at the far ends of the Earth.
The birds round about are against her; come ye, assemble all the beasts of the field, come to devour.
~ Jeremiah 12:9
Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett
References for this devotional.
Creation Devotional August 9 - Biology
Daily Devotional – August 9
Biology
A scientist pondered what she was seeing on the oleander shrub. She had been looking at a shrub and noticed a fly moving around, but upon closer examination, it looked like ants hitching a ride on the fly’s wings. But the ants looked too symmetrical, so she got out her microscope. She was astounded to discover one ant “painted” on each wing of the fruit fly (Goniurellia tridens).
Not only was there a perfect representation of an ant on each wing, but it was so well done that each “painting” displayed an ant’s head, thorax, and abdomen (the three parts of an insect), six legs and two antennae. When frightened, the fruit fly fluttered its wings, causing the two ant-like images to move back and forth, confusing a predator and allowing the fruit fly to dart away. How do evolutionists explain how these images got “painted” on the wings? They don’t – they simply state that “evolution did it.” Did the fruit fly have the mental ability to “paint” these images with its DNA code? When we see perfectly designed images with precise detail, we know there must be a designer, and that designer is God.
Unto thee lift I up mine eyes, O thou that dwellest in the heavens.
~ Psalm 123:1
Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett
References for this devotional.
Creation Devotional August 8 - Microbiology
Daily Devotional – August 8
Microbiology
The molecules of life are never random arrangements of parts. If we think of a protein molecule (the most common molecule of life) as a strand of beads made up of 20 different colors, each color must be placed in exactly the correct location. There are 300 such specifically arranged strands in even a minimally complex cell. The odds of even one of these 300 “necklaces” happening by chance is once in 10125 tries.1 This is more than every electron, proton, and neutron in the entire universe. This is clearly impossible.
Michael Denton, an Australian scientist, has written that even the simplest cell would require at least 100 functional protein “necklaces” to appear simultaneously and start interacting with each other in perfect coordination.2 Since just one protein is as unlikely as 1/10125, the odds of 100 such proteins is 1/102000. That is a one followed by 2000 zeros! It is abundantly clear that life has a designer of unimaginable intelligence and ability!
Oh, give thanks to the Lord of lords! For His mercy endures forever: To Him who alone does great wonders.
~ Psalm 136:3,4
Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett
References for this devotional.
Creation Devotional August 7 - Biology
Daily Devotional – August 7
Biology
Have you ever heard of a bird that sews its nest? This bird, which lives in Southeast Asia, is aptly named the “tailor bird.” The tailor bird starts with large, green tree leaves and pokes holes with its sharp beak along the edges of the leaves. Then, it uses spider webs or grasses to sew the leaves into a cylinder shape. Now the bird builds its nest inside of this cylinder. When the chicks hatch, they are hidden away behind a green curtain of leaves.
How does the tailor bird know how to sew? Did the young, female birds go to sewing classes at bird school? No, these birds are born with this ability programmed in their brains. Scientists call this programming “instinct,” but have never really been able to explain from where these instincts come from. It is as if a program was written in the hard drive of their brain. When we see a program, we know there must be a programmer, and this programmer is God.
Touching the Almighty, we cannot find him out: he is excellent in power….
~ Job 37:23
Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett
References for this devotional.
Creation Devotional August 6 - Cosmology
Daily Devotional – August 6
Cosmology
Step outside on a clear, dark night when there is no moon and see a sweeping band of white across the night sky; it’s the Milky Way galaxy. It looks like someone spilled a bottle of milk as the hazy white area glows, but in reality, it is the light from a vast number of stars.
The night sky is filled with hundreds of billions of galaxies, each with millions to trillions of stars with each star varying in color, size, temperature and brightness; we also find neutron stars, pulsars, and novas (star explosions) along with nebulae in all their splendor. The more we study the universe, the more we are amazed by its immensity, complexity, and beauty.
In the same way, the more we study the Creator God, the more amazing He becomes to us. His power and divine nature are displayed through the things He has made (Romans 1:20). And the things we can observe are but the outer fringe of his works; how faint the whisper we hear of him! (Job 26:14).
We should not be surprised at all the incredible things we find in the universe!
By his spirit he hath garnished the heavens….
~ Job 26:13a
Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett
References for this devotional.
Creation Devotional August 5 - Biology
Daily Devotional – August 5
Biology
Tree frogs live in trees, sticking firmly to branches and leaves – even walking upside down on these surfaces. How do they keep from falling off? It’s all in the feet. Close inspection of a tree frog’s foot reveals pads with cracks and crevices from which mucus oozes. This mucus first cleans the dust and dirt off the surface to which the frog wants to cling. Then more mucus oozes out - creating a thin layer of “adhesive” to grip the surface. These tree frogs have feet that both clean and stick. Did these sticky feet happen by accident and chance? How many tree frogs fell to their death before they got it right? Who created sticky feet for the tree frogs? God only had to speak, and it came into existence.
Praise ye the Lord: for it is good to sing praises unto our God….
~ Psalm 147:1
Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett
References for this devotional.
Creation Devotional August 4 - Biology
Daily Devotional – August 4
Biology
How does a honeybee, a cold-blooded insect, survive the winter? Bees like to keep their hive at 95oF. But how do they do this? As the temperature becomes cooler, the honeybees form a cluster. Those inside the ball of bees are kept warm, and they rotate with the bees on the outside of the ball so that all have a chance to remain warm. As the temperature continues to cool, the bees will move their flight muscles without flying; you could say the bees are “shivering.” This generates heat, warming the bee cluster further.
What if the hive gets too hot in the summer? Some of the bees act as cooling fans, standing at the entrance of the hive and beating their wings creating a breeze. If this does not reduce the hive’s temperature, other bees leave the hive and bring back water that they spread out on the walls of the hive. Now the fanning of the bees causes the water to evaporate and cool the hive.
Bees appear to be smart engineers, but they are just programmed to do this. The really smart engineer is the One who programmed this within them, and that is God.
Thine, O Lord, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O Lord, and thou art exalted as head above all.
~ 1 Chronicles 29:11
Source: "Pearls in Paradise" by authors Bruce Malone and Jule Von Vett
References for this devotional.
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