The Boy Kissed a Frog

When Patrick and I were dating back in college, he asked me to go hunting with him. Daddy had taken me “squirrel hunting,” but you and I both know I wasn’t quiet enough for us to even see a squirrel. So nothing of consequence happened. The first gun I ever shot was a 410 and then moved up to a 22, so being around guns was really no big deal to me. What was a big deal was that I was going hunting…and with Patrick. So, we are sitting in the woods, listening to the birds, and I’m doing my best to not say a word. But you and I both know I had to whisper from time-to-time. After a while, a deer walks out of the thicket. It was so beautiful. I couldn’t any more tell you whether it was a doe or a buck, but when I saw Patrick raise his gun to his shoulder, I couldn’t help myself. I stood up and shouted, “Run, deer, run!” Needless to say, I was never invited back hunting again.


Have you ever wondered what it would be like if animals coexisted with human beings in a non-threatening environment? That’s the way it was in Eden, but with the fall of mankind, the curse would forever destroy that co-existence without fear. In Genesis 9, God blesses Noah and his sons and gives them the same instructions – Be fruitful and multiply. Then God mentions that every living creature on the earth, sky and sea would live in fear of men. Kinda makes me wonder if this was how all of the animals were able to live or co-exist on the ark. God had not put the fear of man in them, or maybe they had the fear of man after the fall and God removed the fear for the sake of the ark. Either way, it is pretty interesting to consider.

Something else I found interesting was the information God gave them about the food they were free to eat. It appears that man was herbivorous prior to the flood but became meat-eaters afterwards. I find that interesting. I wonder if one of the reasons men lived so long before the flood was because they were vegetarians. I also wonder if rain changed the atmosphere causing more harmful light to penetrate the earth. I know the bottom line is that God said He would shorten the days of man to 120, but I wonder if used these two things to help facilitate his decree. Sorry, chased a rabbit – hahaha.

Just the fact that God can control the animals around us and that He has put them under the authority of mankind really is an amazing thing. Too often we just assume things. We take for granted that men are not hunted down by animals. We take for granted the work that has been performed by great beasts of burden. When was the last time you were in awe of one of God’s creatures? If you have small children in your life, take them somewhere where they can be exposed to various animals up close. Look through their eyes as they see different animals for the first time.

We live on the outskirts of town on about three acres. Pearce is always outside. Yesterday, he was thrilled when he found a frog. He was so excited that he had to bring him into the house to show me. “Look, mom! He has paddles!” (Webbed feet) Then he kissed the frog! That poor frog didn’t know what hit him, but Pearce was amazed by him. We have had adventures with a coon, an armadillo, squirrels, stray dogs, and it never fails, Pearce is right there in the middle of it poking, prodding, loving, exploring and in awe and excitement of how unique each animal is.

How creative a God we serve! How diverse! Don’t take it for granted.