Smitty City

Since childhood, God has blown my mind with creation, specifically fauna. Not that I always knew to give the Creator glory for His workmanship, but I has always been fascinated with the work done on the fifth day. There were times when I admired Jacque Cousteau and Steve Irwin as much as I did Will Smith and Michael Jordan (that all ended when I saw the Croc Hunter get bite on the head by a crazy snake). Anyway, at the risk of being labeled pantheistic, God can be seen in His creation. And I believe as a kid, I was drawn to this aspect of creation because it resonated with the innate, inherent, innocent knowledge of God that I had as a child. I couldn't have told you this then, but I wan't fascinated with animals...I was fascinated with God's creativity. The colors, shapes, abilities and noises that I observed loudly proclaimed (and proclaims still) God's glory. Simply...the animals weren't the ones blowing my mind as a kid, God was. As I have gotten older and matured (depending on who you are talking to), I realize that you can see God in more than just a sermon and a Chris Tomlin song. His glory is everywhere just waiting to be acknowledged.

One part of the lives of animals that I have always loved is their defence mechanisms. From the octopus' ink to the stunk's funk, God provided many animals with creative abilities to get out of tough situations. Here is one I have always loved: God painted the Monarch butterfly a beautiful orange and black. It stands out among many things because of its colors. So naturally, preditors are drawn to this flashy meal floating above their heads. But...they only eat one Monarch. The catepillars that later become Monarchs constantly eat milkweed plants until they begin the cocoon process. The bitterness of the milkweed stays in the butterflys systems even as adults, so when they are eaten, the preditor is left with a ultra-bitter taste in thier mouths. Monarchs developed a repulsive tasting reputation so they are forever left alone. The Viceroy butterfly, on the other hand, is sweet and tastey unlike its nearly identical family member. The animal life cannot tell the two apart, therefore, Viceroys are not eaten either forever fooling its enemies. God's glory and ingeniuity revealed in butterflys...who would have thought it.