Creature Feature
Then God told Noah and his sons, I hereby confirm my covenant with you and your descendants, and with all the animals that were on the boat with you – the birds, the livestock, and all the wild animals – every living creature on earth. – Genesis 9: 8-10 (TLB)
In just about a month from now [September 23rd], the first day of fall 2010 will be upon us and the magnificent greenery of the grass and trees will undergo another transformation – making ready for the oncoming Winter. I mentioned this because of what I’ve seen of flying insects since mid July up until now. Whether I’ve driven short or long distances along the state roads or interstate highways, beautiful butterflies would catch my eyes. Against the green landscape, their multicolored large scaly wings would stand out. As far as I could tell the majority of the butterflies were Monarchs, but another type species appeared smaller in size and flat yellow.
Anyway, other than the appearance of floating effortlessly, the butterflies flew with remarkable speed; especially for their size and weight. What struck my attention was that they appeared out of nowhere just about a few inches from the windshield of my car but never hitting it! It was just a week ago while enroute to the mountains that I counted at least five or six barely missing my fast moving vehicle. It was amazing! None of them never “splattered” on my windshield even though there could have been many others that hit other parts of car without my knowing it. On many occasions when I’d wash my car, all kinds of bugs could be stuck on the front bumper and hood. Very rarely have I seen remnants of butterflies or moths there; only bullet sized insects like bees, dragon flies (?), etc. Butterfly or moth, what is the difference?
Well, while making a business run to Brown’s chapel United Methodist Church in Catawba, NC, last week, I just happen to run into a situation where I couldn’t tell one from the other. Nonetheless, as I stepped out of the car and looked down [nearly a foot or so from the front tire], an unusually large moth/butterfly was sputtering helplessly on the pavement. My first instinct was to get it out of harm’s way; so, I sort of helped it a bit with a sheet of paper and moved onto the grass. It flapped its wings attempting to fly, but somehow it appeared injured. Fascinated by its activity and lack of spontaneity, I got an old twig enabling it to be something familiar. In the area covered with foliage and dry leaves {a good distance from human activity}, I placed the twig and my little critter friend there so that it could blend in with the environment as well as recuperate.
However, to quell [pacify] my curiosity, I discovered that there is no one rule that covers all species of butterflies or moth, but in general there are differences between the two;
· Most butterflies primarily fly during the day (are diurnal) and many moths fly at night (are nocturnal).
· Butterflies have knobbed antenna and moths have feathery or straight antenna.
· Butterfly bodies are usually slim, while moth bodies are plump and hairy.
· Moths usually spin silken cocoons to enclose their pupae or burrow underground to pupate [the inactive stage of metamorphosis].
· Butterflies form chrysalises.
Butterflies are found all over the world and in all types of environments: hot and cold, dry and moist, at sea level and high in the mountains. Most butterfly species, however, are found in tropical areas, especially tropical rainforests. Many butterflies migrate in order to avoid diverse environmental conditions (like cold weather). Butterfly migration is not well understood. Most migrate relatively short distances (like the Painted Lady, the Red Admiral, and the Common Buckeye), but few (like the Monarchs) migrate thousands of miles. Absolutely outstanding! A great deal of things went through my mind as I rehearsed what I experienced about the butterflies or moths.
Then God told Noah and his sons, I hereby confirm my covenant with you and your descendants, and with all the animals that were on the boat with you – the birds, the livestock, and all the wild animals – every living creature on earth. – Genesis 9: 8-10 (TLB)
In just about a month from now [September 23rd], the first day of fall 2010 will be upon us and the magnificent greenery of the grass and trees will undergo another transformation – making ready for the oncoming Winter. I mentioned this because of what I’ve seen of flying insects since mid July up until now. Whether I’ve driven short or long distances along the state roads or interstate highways, beautiful butterflies would catch my eyes. Against the green landscape, their multicolored large scaly wings would stand out. As far as I could tell the majority of the butterflies were Monarchs, but another type species appeared smaller in size and flat yellow.
Anyway, other than the appearance of floating effortlessly, the butterflies flew with remarkable speed; especially for their size and weight. What struck my attention was that they appeared out of nowhere just about a few inches from the windshield of my car but never hitting it! It was just a week ago while enroute to the mountains that I counted at least five or six barely missing my fast moving vehicle. It was amazing! None of them never “splattered” on my windshield even though there could have been many others that hit other parts of car without my knowing it. On many occasions when I’d wash my car, all kinds of bugs could be stuck on the front bumper and hood. Very rarely have I seen remnants of butterflies or moths there; only bullet sized insects like bees, dragon flies (?), etc. Butterfly or moth, what is the difference?
Well, while making a business run to Brown’s chapel United Methodist Church in Catawba, NC, last week, I just happen to run into a situation where I couldn’t tell one from the other. Nonetheless, as I stepped out of the car and looked down [nearly a foot or so from the front tire], an unusually large moth/butterfly was sputtering helplessly on the pavement. My first instinct was to get it out of harm’s way; so, I sort of helped it a bit with a sheet of paper and moved onto the grass. It flapped its wings attempting to fly, but somehow it appeared injured. Fascinated by its activity and lack of spontaneity, I got an old twig enabling it to be something familiar. In the area covered with foliage and dry leaves {a good distance from human activity}, I placed the twig and my little critter friend there so that it could blend in with the environment as well as recuperate.
However, to quell [pacify] my curiosity, I discovered that there is no one rule that covers all species of butterflies or moth, but in general there are differences between the two;
· Most butterflies primarily fly during the day (are diurnal) and many moths fly at night (are nocturnal).
· Butterflies have knobbed antenna and moths have feathery or straight antenna.
· Butterfly bodies are usually slim, while moth bodies are plump and hairy.
· Moths usually spin silken cocoons to enclose their pupae or burrow underground to pupate [the inactive stage of metamorphosis].
· Butterflies form chrysalises.
Butterflies are found all over the world and in all types of environments: hot and cold, dry and moist, at sea level and high in the mountains. Most butterfly species, however, are found in tropical areas, especially tropical rainforests. Many butterflies migrate in order to avoid diverse environmental conditions (like cold weather). Butterfly migration is not well understood. Most migrate relatively short distances (like the Painted Lady, the Red Admiral, and the Common Buckeye), but few (like the Monarchs) migrate thousands of miles. Absolutely outstanding! A great deal of things went through my mind as I rehearsed what I experienced about the butterflies or moths.
Genesis 9: 8-10 brought in a floodgate of spiritual food. The context of Genesis 9: 8-17 has to do with God confirming His covenant with Noah and his family. But I was completely shocked when verse 10 read, and with all the animals that was on the boat with you –the birds, the livestock, and all the wild animals – every living creature on earth. I see this powerful verse as God not only making a covenant with Noah but also a covenant with every living creature on earth! Perhaps you may view it differently, but these notions just thrills me to no end. There is much more in this. Noah stepped out of the boat onto the earth devoid of human life, but God gave him a reassuring promise. This covenant had three parts: 1) Never again will a flood so such destruction, 2) as long as the earth remains, the seasons will always come as expected, 3) a rainbow will be visible when it rains as a sign to all that God will keep his promises. The earth’s order and season are still preserved, and rainbows still remind us of God’s faithfulness to his word. Bingo! The creature feature or the Butterfly episode was a reminder to me that God can be trusted. The earth’s order and season are still preserved – the butterflies and moths are still doing their thing to the glory of God. He created them too. Selah
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