Jewel # 185 (Aug. 29, 2014)

“They shall be Mine, saith the Lord of hosts,

in that day when I make 

up MY JEWELS.”

(Malachi 3:17)

To my dear grandchildren

The Barbary Ape

“The eyes of all wait upon Thee. . . . Thou openest Thine hand,

and satisfies the desire of every living thing.”

(Psalm 145:15-16)

Its fun to watch monkeys in the zoo, especially when they do tricks their trainers have taught them.  Even King Solomon found them interesting and brought some to Jerusalem, probably as part of his zoo.

There are many species of monkeys and apes in God’s creation, and He has supplied everything they need.  Since they do look a little like humans, some people think that humans and monkeys are related, but the Bible assures us this is not so.  There are many differences, both in body structure and intelligence.  Apes  and monkeys are part of the animal creation.  Man was formed separately and is distinct and superior to all other created things. The Bible says, “God created man in His [God’s] own image” (Genesis 1:27) .

The Barbary Ape is actually a monkey rather than an ape.  It is a native of Africa but is also a famous resident of the Rock of Gibraltar where it was found when the British came there in 1704.  These apes live in large colonies of several dozen, with a powerful male as their leader.  He is responsible for the behaviour of those in his colony, although the young ones being full of play and mischief are given lots of freedom.  Babies are lovingly nursed by their mothers and cling to their mother’s fur for the first few weeks of life.  They eventually grow to be about three feet tall.  They have excellent memories and are always curious about anything new or strange.

Like most monkeys, the Barbary ape is a great climber and very acrobatic even though it has no tail.  Most of its time is spent searching for food, which includes fruit, leaves, roots, seeds, locusts and lizards.  Its sense of smell is poor, but its sight and hearing are excellent.

Barbary apes live where there are many dangerous scorpions that have deadly, poisonous stingers in their tails.  But this ape has no fear of them. When a scorpion is spotted, the ape quickly pounces on it in just the right way.  Then the tail with its poisonous stinger is twisted off, and the ape has a scorpion dinner.  How long do you think it took these apes to learn this trick?  Actually, they did not need to learn it, because God gave them that ability when He created them.

We are impressed with God’s  watchful care over these interesting apes.  But the psalmist was thinking of something even more impressive when he exclaimed, “How precious also are Thy thoughts unto me, O God!  How great is the sum of them!” (Psalm 139:17). 

Have you thought of God’s loving care in providing a Saviour for you?  He invites you to come to Him through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, that you might have your sins forgiven and have everlasting life.

Love you all,

Grandpa    

Jewel # 184 (Aug 10, 2014)

To my dear grandchildren,

Man’s Friend - the Horse

“In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses,

HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD.”

(Zechariah 14:20)

Isn’t it amazing that some large animals like horses, which can weigh 2000 pounds or more, can be taught to obey a boy or girl weighing less than 100 pounds?  God arranged this in creation and declared in Genesis 1:26 that man should dominate all living creatures.

Centuries ago men discovered that a horse’s mouth could be used to control it.  Between its front and back teeth is an open space.  A metal bar, called a bit, is placed there and a bridle is attached to it.  This is then used to direct the horse wherever the rider wants it to go.  

King David in the Bible wrote about horses: “Be ye not as the horse . . . whose mouth must be held in with a bit and bridle” (Psalm 32:9).  This advice warns us not to resist God or He may have to turn us in the right direction by some stronger action.

A horse keeps its “baby teeth” until it is five years old, and then new, strong teeth replace them.  But over the years these wear down, so an experienced horseman can tell a horse’s age by counting its teeth and looking at their condition.

Have you noticed that horse’s eyes are situated more on each side of its head than in front like yours?  The Creator gave it this extra safety precaution so it can see to each side.  They have larger eyes than that any other land animal.

A horse’s entire body helps it to receive sounds.  Besides its ears, its hooves sense sound and pass it on through its bones and nerves.  A horse has sharp hearing and can move its ears to catch sounds from almost any direction.  Its ears are also a clue to its disposition.  Straight foreword - it is interested and usually friendly.  Laid back - look out!  It may be angry or annoyed.

God gave the legs and feet of a horse a special design.  As a horse runs, its foot hits the ground with a powerful force.  An elastic ligament above the hoof stretches out so the full force of the animal’s great weight does not hurt the lower part of the leg.  This feature prevents the leg bones from breaking and becoming useless and allows it to gallop and jump without harm.  Yet a horse can sleep standing upright.  Its legs are provided with “lock-joints” which remain firm and straight even though the horse is sound asleep.

These wonderful animals did not develop their unusual abilities by themselves.  Everything about them shows the wisdom of the Creator when He placed them among earth’s animals.

The psalmist said, “Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the Lord our God" (Psalm 20:7), and “Blessed is the man that trusts in Him” (Psalm 34:8).  

Are you trusting in earthly things or are you trusting in God?

Love you all,

Grandpa

         

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Jewel # 183 (Aug 2, 2014)

“They shall be Mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up MY JEWELS.”

(Malachi 3:17) 

To my dear grandchildren,

The Ever-Present Cockroach

“His eyes are upon the ways of man, and He seeth all his goings.

There is no darkness . . . where they may hide themselves.”

(Job 34:21-22)

There are 3500 species of cockroaches, about a dozen of which are in Canada and the United States.  They are found in the kitchens, bathrooms and cupboards of rich and poor alike and also in restaurants, grocery stores and food storage places.  The largest is four inches long and the smallest is one-eighth of an inch long, and lives in the tropics.  They dislike bright light and usually come out only at night.  You might catch a glimpse of them as they scurry to hide when a light is turned on.

Cockroaches, closely related to grasshoppers and crickets, are mostly black or brown.  These unpleasant pests are well equipped for survival.  Their strong legs are covered with bristles and their jaws have sharp cutting blades capable of handling tough items, including food scraps, paper, cloth, glue, soap, leather and even electric cords.  

Before feeding, they use their antennae and special feelers to “inspect” the food to determine if it is safe to eat.  Through this “inspection,” they sometimes avoid poisons intended for them.  Spraying with insecticide in their concealed hideouts does not do much good either.  The pressure-sensitive hairs on their bodies also inform them when danger is near, sending them running away in a fraction of a second.  Even their endurance is remarkable.  

Tests have shown they can survive a month without water and three months without food!  Cockroaches can survive underwater for a half hour.   No wonder they are hard to get rid of!

Preferring warm, dirty, damp places, they are frequently surrounded by filth, which they eat and which clings to their legs.  They sometimes are transported to other places when they hide in paper bags and cartons and they are known to carry disease.  However, they are industrious in grooming themselves by brushing their bodies with their legs.

We are not told why the Creator included the cockroach when He brought so many insects into the world.  Perhaps one purpose is to impress on us that the world has been spoiled by sin and to remind us of Satan who also “grooms” himself to appear sometimes as “an angel of light.”  But in spite of this deceit, the devil is man’s worst enemy.

The Apostle Paul was aware of Satan’s evil activity and that those who do not turn away from his influence will, in a coming time, be under God’s solemn judgement.  “O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me out of this body of . . . death?”, he cried.  Finding the answer, he happily responded, “I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 7:24-25).

Have you also accepted Christ as your Saviour so that you can now give thanks unto the Father “who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son” (Colossians 1:13)?

I love you all,

Grandpa

Jewel # 181 (July 26, 2014)

“They shall be Mine, saith the Lord of hosts, 

in that day when I make 

up MY JEWELS.”

(Malachi 3:17)

To my dear grandchildren,

Two Big, Strong Buffalo

“I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are upon the ground,

by My great power and by My outstretched arm.”

(Jeremiah 27:5)

One of North America’s wild animals is called a buffalo.  Actually, it is not a buffalo; it is a bison.  The true wild buffalo live in the grasslands, swamps and mountains of South Africa and Asia.  Domesticated species live in Egypt, Europe and South America.  All range in size from 450 to 1500 pounds and are 3 to 5 feet high at the shoulders.  They have short, thick necks, broad heads, long tails, short legs and long, pointed horns curving outward.

All buffalo are good swimmers, and they are never found far from rivers or water holes.  They also enjoy neck deep mud baths, often shared with hippos.  They do this to escape the hot sun and relieve the bites of pesky insects.  Lets look at two kinds.

The coal-black Cape buffalo of South Africa is the largest.  It is about five feet tall and weighs over half a ton.  It is a terrifying experience to have this large animal charge you.  It can run at more than thirty miles an hour and fears neither man nor beast.  It is not a very attractive animal with its huge, low-slung, ivory-coloured, curved horns, which look like a helmet that has been draped from the top of its massive, ugly head.  

However the Cape buffalo does have some friends.  Birds called ox-peckers perch on the buffalo’s back and sides, eating their fill of ticks and other insects that they pick from the animal’s hair and skin.    These red-beaked birds are equipped by the Creator with special claws on their feet for holding onto the animal’s sides while feeding, just as a woodpecker clings to the side of a tree.  Both animal and bird find this a great convenience, and the relationship between the two is another example of how God frequently arranges for two entirely different creatures to help one another.

Another species, the water buffalo of India, is somewhat smaller and has an entirely different character.  Given a chance, it seeks marshy places and lies in the water when chewing its cud.  Large numbers are tamed and pull carts, drag plows through rice paddies, and carry loads on their backs.  Although fierce looking, they do not attack men, and when they are tamed, even little children can handle them easily.  Buffalo have very good memories.

The Lord God has taken delight in creating even these buffalo, some of them serving mankind and others just filling their place in His purposes of creation.

The Bible reminds us of this in these verses: “Who knoweth not in all these that the hand of the Lord hath wrought this?  In whose hand is the soul [life] of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind” (Job 12:9-10).

Love you all,

Grandpa                       

Jewel # 179 (July 2, 2014)

“And they shall be Mine, saith the Lord of hosts, 

in that day when I make up MY JEWELS.”

(Malachi 3:17)

To my dear grandchildren,

The Praying Mantis

“The Lord is good to all: and His tender mercies are over all His works.”

(Psalm 145:9)

Late in the fall, the female praying mantis lays a mass of 100 or more eggs, which she glues to a tree or shrub with a sticky substance from her body.  This sticky substance covers the eggs and protects them throughout the winter months.

When spring warmth arrives, the eggs hatch and the larvae begin lives of eating insects.  Sometimes the stronger ones even eat their weaker brothers and sisters before they get away.  Exposed to the air, the larva skin promptly hardens, but as it grows, the skin splits open and drops off.  This process, called moulting, is repeated several times, until by mid-summer the larva has finished its growth and its wings appear.

The praying mantis prefers to catch its prey alive.  Its green or brown colour camouflages it to look just like part of the plants on which it rests.  It holds its front legs up, making it look like it is praying, and remains perfectly still until some unsuspecting victim comes along.  With a head that can turn 180 degrees, it usually doesn’t have to wait long before seeing a beetle, caterpillar, fly, aphid or other insect coming close, which is quickly captured.  The front legs of the mantis have sharp hooks, and once the victim has been grasped, it has no chance of escape.  God has given it an instinct to bite through the nerve center at the back of the victim’s neck, bringing instant death.  A praying mantis has only one ear, on the underside of its belly. 

Its way seem cruel, but since it destroys many harmful insects, it is a friend of every farmer and gardener and should not be harmed by anyone.  Since they are so beneficial, egg cases (each with many eggs inside) can be purchased to place in fields and gardens to control many harmful insects.

In observing the ways of this insect, we see another example of the way God has arranged for the care of one more of His creatures and at the same time providing a necessary means of helping to control harmful insects. 

As the mantis appears to be praying but is actually waiting to catch its food, its manner of life makes us think of those who do not really know the Lord Jesus as their Saviour, yet they appear to be religious.  The Lord saw many people like this and on one occasion said, “Beware of the scribes, which love to go in long clothing . . . and the chief seats in the synagogues, and . . . which devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayers” (Mark 12:38-40).  

But to those who sincerely seek the Lord, He promises them, “The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon Him, to all that call upon Him in truth” (Psalm 145:18).  He will always hear your prayer when you speak to Him with a true heart. 

Love you all,

Grandpa

Jewel # 178 (June 22, 2014)

“And they shall be Mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up MY JEWELS.”

(Malachi 3:17)

To my dear grandchildren, 

The Seldom-Seen Lynx

“Known unto God are all His works from the beginning of the world."

(Acts 15:18)

The pretty lynx, a medium-sized wildcat, that slinks silently through trees, brush and snow for its prey, likes the cold climate of the Yukon, Sweden and Russia.  However, many are also in warmer areas of Canada, northern United States and a few Asian countries.  They all prefer homes in thickets of trees or brush and usually have two tiny kittens each year.

A full-grown lynx is about three feet long, with a small two-inch tail, and will weigh from 30 to 60 pounds.  Its fur is finest in the winter when it is a thick, luxurious light brown that is sometimes marked with dark brown spots.  They have white on their chests and underparts.  A stubby fur-covered tail and upright ears, having long tufts of black hair on the  tips of them, are it most outstanding features.

Their main food in the north is the snow shoe rabbit, but if these are scarce, they will catch small deer or caribou or large birds.

The Creator has provided them with large, padded paws, wider in diameter than the palm of a man’s hand, and in winter extra fur grows around the edges to help them walk in snow.  They are good climbers and swimmers.

Those farther south also like rabbit meat but include in their diet squirrels, gophers and other small animals and birds.  They have keen sight and hearing, and stalk their prey silently, until close enough to make a springing leapt to catch it.  At times they lie on tree branches, waiting to pounce on prey passing below.  A lynx can spot a mouse from 250 feet away.

While the lynx is an enemy to small animals and birds, it is actually quite shy and no threat to people.  If possible, it will always vanish before a person can get close.

Do you think the Lord God is aware of these animals as they live out their lives in such remote places?  We know He is, for we read in the Bible, “The Lord is good to all: and His tender mercies are over all His works” (Psalm 145:9).  Verse 10 tells us more: “All Thy works shall praise Thee, O Lord; and Thy saints shall bless Thee.”

This looks on to a coming time when God’s punishment of sinful people will be over and He will restore the earth to peace and freedom.  During that special time, when Christ reigns for 1000 years, all created things will “praise Him” in their peaceful way, and the tiger, bear, lynx and any other carnivorous animals will no longer kill, but but all will live peacefully together.  

People who have accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour will bless Him more fully than is possible today.  If you know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Saviour, you should be happily praising Him right now, and it will be your privilege to praise Him even more in that future time.  

Love you all,

Grandpa

Jewel # 177 (June 15, 2014)

“And they shall be Mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up MY JEWELS.”

(Malachi 3:17)

To my dear grandchildren

The Purple Martin

“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)

After having migrated to Central and South America for the winter, martins return each spring to North America.  Some have been seen in summer as far north as the Saskatchewan Valley in Canada.

Their forked tails, wide wings and the way they catch their food while flying identify these eight-inch birds as part of the swallow family.  There are several species, including the house martin, the sand martin and the purple martin, which is the one we will focus on. 

The males of the purple martin species are a beautiful, dark purplish-blue colour all over.  The females are much the same, but the undersides of their bodies are light coloured.  These birds nest in colonies with each pair raising three to eight young birds.

Because they are great inset eaters, catching insects from the air while in flight (including mosquitoes), purple martins have earned the friendship of farmers and people who live in the suburbs.  Some place martin houses on tall supports near their homes or barns to keep these welcome insect-eating “neighbours” nearby.  Some of these martin houses allow space for 50 nests or more.  There is an interesting trait about the martins living in these “apartment” houses.  

Most houses have adjoining balconies where the parent birds like to alight and perch before entering their own apartment.  The baby birds, not yet able to fly, sometimes hop about on these balconies.  After exploring, they forget which hole they came from and often enter a neighbour’s apartment by mistake.  Strangely enough, parent martins do not seem to be able to recognize their own chicks, and these “neighbourhood chicks” are accepted, fed and cared for as part of the family.

Although martins do not like other birds as close neighbours, house sparrows and European starlings do not share this trait.  If there is an opportunity a sparrow or starling will move into a martin pair’s apartment and chase the true owners away.  If this happened in most bird species, they would work together to keep the intruder out.  But the martin is not a fighter, so it meekly accepts the loss of its home to the thief.

Our opening verse tells us of the happy season of the year when winter’s cold, dark days are over, flowers are showing their pretty colours, and birds are returning from their migrations.  It is similar to the happy time when a boy or girl or grown-up places their trust in the Lord Jesus as their Saviour.  The dark times are left behind, and the reality of belonging to the Lord Jesus brings a joy many times happier than even the yearly return of spring.  

Have you had this experience by accepting the Lord Jesus as your Saviour?

Love you all,

Grandpa