A Cool Coincidence

Have you ever heard of the North American walnut sphinx? It is a moth caterpillar that has one of the coolest defense mechanisms in all of creation. God equipped this insect with a nice camouflage, but birds are still able to track them down and eat them. The walnut sphinx has been nicknamed the accordion worm because of the way it compresses its body lengthwise when it is under duress. The moth has tiny holes called spiracles that allow air to exit its body while it is compressing, and the sound of the rushing air creates a whistling sound.

Here is the cool part: the whistling sound emitted by the walnut sphinx sounds exactly like the alarm call of the very songbird that is trying to eat it. When the songbird hears the mimicked alarm call, he thinks a fellow bird is warning him of nearby danger, and the bird flies away. It has been said that this moth whistles while it irks. The whistling sound has clocked in at 80 decibels, which is louder than the average volume at which humans talk.

In an evolutionary journal called Scientific American, Christopher Intagliata described this phenomenon as “A cool coincidence, for sure.” That five-word sentence tells you all you need to know about the difference in Darwinian evolution and belief in the biblical account of a Creator God. The evolutionist is confronted with dozens of examples of intelligent design (I have written frequently about it in these columns), and they must conclude it is “a cool coincidence.” When the evidence points towards God, they so badly want to be the god of their own lives that they dismiss intelligent design as a coincidence (usually while saying Christians don’t get science). The science points a Christian towards God, but causes the evolutionist to settle for “a cool coincidence.”

It is a cool coincidence that the amount of gravity on our planet does not cause us to fly away, but neither does it crush us. It is a cool coincidence that Earth’s distance from the sun neither scorches us nor freezes us. It is a cool coincidence that Earth rotates in such a way as to give us day and night, as well as seasons, and we get just enough of each.

I don’t have to believe in millions of coincidences. I don’t have enough faith to believe in evolution. It is so much easier to trust in a Sovereign God that fine-tuned this universe, our bodies, and everything else to run just right. I don’t believe in coincidences; I believe in Creation.     

God is in Control

Last week we looked at the consequences of Jonah’s sin—how he “went down” in a spiral because he was running from God. But I also believe it is important to concentrate on how God acted during Jonah’s tailspin. The prodigal prophet may have thought he was in control of things while he was running in the opposite direction of Nineveh, but even in his disobedience he could not thwart the plans on the Almighty.

In 1:17 the narrative reads, “Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.” The Lord prepared a fish. This was not a freak accident or a random event, but was providentially orchestrated by God Himself. Did He prepare the fish from scratch just for this occasion, or had God been preparing the fish for years? Was it a special kind of fish that did not exist? We do not know, but we know where it came from. God was in control, and He prepared the instrument that was going to get Jonah’s attention.

God had already prepared Jonah to be a prophet, and then prepared him to preach to the Ninevites; his disobedience was not going to keep the Lord’s message out of Nineveh, so God prepared a great fish. Earlier He had prepared a storm that was used to toss Jonah overboard so that the fish He prepared could swallow him. Since surviving inside the stomach of a fish is not possible, there would need to be some miraculous preparations taking place for that as well. Later in this letter God prepared a plant to grow to give Jonah shade, and then He prepared a worm to eat the plant. Through the entire story God is in control.

 That is an important lesson for us to keep in mind as we live life. Jonah is not just a story about a prophet taking God’s message to a pagan nation, or about a crazy fish that happened to eat a man and spit him out on dry land. It isn’t a coincidence. God is sovereign and nothing happens that He does not either author or allow. We cannot stop Him, and He does not need our permission. Your life may feel like things are coming unraveled sometimes, but it may just be that God is preparing something that we cannot see.

Gideon: God's Warrior

When we think about Gideon we may remember him as a warrior who led a small band of soldiers to defeat the Midianites. We also may think about him putting out a fleece, seeking a sign from God that he really was God’s chosen leader for a special mission. We think highly of Gideon because of what he did, and what God did through him, even reading a quick reference to him in the Hebrews 11 Hall of Faith. Gideon became a might warrior for God, but he did not start out that way.

The Angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon in Judges 6:12, telling him “The LORD is with you, you mighty warrior.” When we read those words we may get the impression that he was a hotshot young general with a bright military future, the heir apparent to Israel’s next leader. But the text gives us a small clue that Gideon wasn’t exactly Joshua 2.0. The preceding verses say Gideon was threshing wheat in the winepress to hide from the Midianties. The winepress was used to smash grapes, not thresh wheat. Gideon used a strategic location—a cave—because he was so scared of the Midianties. He hardly looks like a mighty warrior.

While we often use the phrase “put out a fleece” to refer to trying to discern God’s will, Gideon’s use of the fleece was more an act of fear. God already told him he would be used to defeat Midian “as if they were one man,” so the fleece was not necessary, especially when he put the fleece out the second night. Gideon did not need to discern God’s will, he just needed to obey it. Again, this doesn’t look like a warrior. And yet, that is exactly what God called him.

It is incredible that God called Gideon something that he wasn’t. Not yet. God knew that Gideon would become a warrior, but at the time he was scared, secretly threshing wheat in cave, and stalling when God called Him. I believe God looks at us and calls us what we can be, not what we are right now. What does God call you?

You may be a new believer, but God sees that you will one day be a mature Christian. You may not be serving in your local church, but God sees you teaching a class, driving a bus, or keeping the nursery. You may not feel like God can use you, but He knows exactly what He can do through you. He took a scared Gideon and turned him into a warrior; what can He do through you? Trust Him, and He might just amaze you.  

Jonah's Downward Spiral

The story of Jonah most likely makes us think of the big fish that swallowed the prophet. And why not? It is a great story because people are not commonly eaten by fish, and even if they are, they don’t live to tell about it. It really is the ultimate fish story, but instead of Jonah telling his buddies about the big fish he caught, he could tell them about the fish that caught him. When we think of Jonah we think of the big fish, and when we share the story of Jonah it is usually to teach that God gives second chances: Jonah ran from God when he was called to preach in Nineveh, but he got another chance when the fish vomited him out in—of all places—Nineveh.

But Jonah is about more than just the grace of God. This short book also gives us a picture of what sin does in the life of a believer. Notice this repetition of the word down in Jonah: instead of going to Nineveh he went down to Joppa; after getting a boat to take him the opposite direction of God’s will, he went down into the inner part of the ship; from there he laid down and took a nap; he was thrown overboard and went down into the water and down into the belly of the fish. Had Jonah not been tossed out of the ship, it too would have gone down during the storm. As Dr. Eric Bargerhuff said of this passage, “Sin doesn’t lift you up, it only brings you down, and Jonah is circling the drain.” He found himself in a whale of trouble.

Because of Jonah’s disobedience he went on a downward spiral that took him into the bowels of a fish. When Jonah was summoned by God to testify in Nineveh, he could have obeyed and avoided all the headaches, and the stomachache for the fish. If he would have known that his rebellion would take him into the heart of a storm, into the fury of his shipmates, and into the belly of a fish, he would surely have obeyed to begin with. You have probably heard the old adage that “sin will take you farther than you want to go, cost you more than you want to pay, and keep you longer than you want to stay,” and that is certainly seen in Jonah’s life. I’m not saying that if you disobey God you will end up as fish food, but I do believe disobedience to God is always the wrong choice. Whatever God may be leading you to do, learn the lesson of Jonah and obey Him the first time.

Dream Big

As Christians it is important that we never stop dreaming about something big God can do through us. Perhaps one of the most famous dreamers in the modern era was Walt Disney, who created an empire that brings joy to millions of people. His theme parks are arguably the most famous in the world, and his productions include some of the most beloved characters and movies of all time.

None of what Disney created was by chance. He dreamed big, risked it all, and was able to see his dreams materialize. Mickey Mouse is a perpetual reminder of Disney’s dreams. At the fiftieth anniversary celebration of the opening of Disney Land, Disney’s friend Art Linkletter told of a conversation he had with a friend. The friend commented that it was a shame that Disney could not be there to see what Disney Land had become, and Linkletter replied, “He did see it. That’s why its here.”

Disney looked into the future, then took steps in the present to get there. Too many people like the idea of experiencing something big, but they play it safe, never doing anything to make their dreams become a reality. Others never dream at all.

I would encourage Christians to dream. Think about something big God can do through you, a way to impact His kingdom. How can you show someone the love of God? How can you feed the hungry, care for the sick, or visit those in prison? What can you do to take the gospel to people in the third world? What can you do for your local church?

As we begin a new year, dream about what God can do through you. He may lead you to risk something or get outside of your comfort zone; that’s ok. Life is too short to play it safe. Pray for God to lay something big on your heart, and when He does, see it through. Picture it now, then see it again when it comes to pass.

“Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.”

Proverbs 16:3