Dear Soaring Golden Eagle:
Good message, I have used this same example in a devotion a long time ago. It
may have been all the way back to the days I was a AWANA leader.
Keep up the good work.
In Gods Service
Randall A. Hermanson
Soaring Golden Eagle wrote:
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> A long time ago, some scientists were studying the effects of water
> temperature on frogs. Frogs are interesting amphibians. They are
> cold-blooded, meaning that their body temperature just follows the
> temperature of the surrounding environment. This is different from
> warm-blooded animals and people, whose bodies generate heat, sweat, or
> take some other action to keep their body temperatures constant. Frogs
> do seem to have some preferences with respect to temperature, though.
> For example, if you take a frog and drop the unfortunate creature into
> a pot of boiling water, it will jump like crazy to get out of there as
> soon as it can!
>
> One guy ran an experiment to see at what temperature a frog gets
> uncomfortable in water and jumps out. He put a frog in a pan of cold
> water along with a thermometer, and started heating the water very
> slowly. The water kept warming up, and the frog just did its thing in
> the water, oblivious to the warming. It seemed to be quite comfortable
> with the water as it warmed up. The water got warm to the touch, but
> the frog showed no concern. It just seemed more interested in watching
> for a fly to go by. Still the water warmed, very slowly. The scientist
> observed carefully, recording the time, the frog's movements, and the
> temperature as the water kept heating. The frog didn't seem to know or
> care that the water was now getting VERY warm. Indeed, the pan was
> shallow enough that the frog could jump out at any time, but it just
> sat there, like it was a warm bath or something. The temperature kept
> rising. After a long time, the water was actually boiling, and the
> frog still hadn't jumped out. Indeed, by then, it couldn't -- it had
> literally been boiled to death.
>
> People have the same sort of problem -- not with boiling water, but
> with sin. Like the frog, people can get used to seeing, hearing, and
> doing sin, a little at a time. We are immersed in a world of
> entertainment and news where sin is portrayed all the time, and it has
> been getting worse. Some things that seem innocent get progressively
> worse. For example, when a bank robber robs a bank, you can be pretty
> sure that isn't the first time he has stolen anything. He probably
> stole a lot of times before that, maybe starting with a piece of candy
> from the local grocery store. There seems to us to be a big difference
> between stealing a few cents worth of candy and felony armed robbery
> of thousands of dollars, and in some ways there is, but to God, it is
> all sin. God said "You shall not steal." This goes for other types of
> sin, too, including hate leading to murder, games leading to
> witchcraft and sorcery, covetousness leading to idolotry, and more.
> Satan knows this, and tries to lead people along a path such that they
> don't realize that what they are doing is "that bad."
>
> Fortunately for us Christians, there is a cure. In your Bible, in 1
> John 1:9, the Holy Spirit speaking through John tells us that when we
> sin, we should confess our sin to God, and God will cleanse us from
> all unrighteousness. We admit what we did wrong, and start doing what
> is right, again. Praise God! John is careful to explain that we aren't
> supposed to sin, but if we do, there is a way to "start over" in
> fellowship with God, again.
>
> The reason the frog died in the boiling water was that it didn't know
> the water was too hot, because it didn't have anything at room
> temperature to compare it to. We are in the "boiling water" of this
> world's sin-laden entertainment and just plain mean behavior that goes
> on. We have something to compare the "temperature" of the world to,
> though: the Holy Bible. When we read our Bible and pray regularly, we
> are constantly reminded of what God wants, and how that compares to
> what we see in the world. That way, if we see something that isn't
> pleasing to God, like a bad TV show or commercial, we know to reject
> it and turn it off, like the frog thrown suddenly into the boiling
> water. If we don't spend regular time in the Word of God, though, we
> become like the frog that was slowly boiled to death, and don't even
> realize what is wrong.
>
> Boys and girls, make sure you spend time reading and listening to the
> Bible. That way you will know what God thinks of things that your
> friends might want you to do that might not be good.
>
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>
> Michael Paul Johnson
> aka Soaring Golden Eagle
> PO Box 1151, Longmont CO 80502-1151, USA
> Rocky Mountain outpost 207, New Creation Church
> Jesus Christ is Lord!
>
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