Floating Beauties

Before I begin, let's take a minute to reflect on how intensely beautiful that picture is. There are a lot of crazy creatures out there, like the Narwhal & the Sea Cucumber, but the jellyfish is one of the weirdest.

The ocean in itself is a massive mystery. We, as humans, however much we strive, will never be able to uncover all of it's strange depths.

Jellyfish are incredibly unique animals. There are too many types to count. There are almost microscopic ones in Australia that can either kill or paralyze with just one sting. There are massive ones called Man-O-Wars, that have 200 foot long tentacles, and there's even one that, through use of unique cells, never technically die.

Needless to say, there are a lot of them. And they are oddly similar to humans.

Why you ask? Here are some key characteristics of each:
-sting or harm everything they come in contact with.
-attempt control of direction, but are ultimately controlled by that which holds them.
-notorious wanderers
-travel in groups but are alone.

We, like the jellyfish, are natural born killers. We destroy the trust of our friends, we absentmindedly break bonds, hurt others. When we are born, we are the scum of this earth, even in our beautiful design.

Psalm 51:5 says "Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
and in sin did my mother conceive me."
From birth we are evil. However good of a person you may be, you are still not good enough.

We are controlled by our God, our 'ocean'. He holds us, he directs our movements, and he puts us through tests. We will be tossed and turned through waves. We are helpless; "We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;"
2 Corinthians 4:8-9

We live in our solitude, whether we like it or not. We can spend time with others, in large groups, maybe having a lot of fun. But we are alone, and without the mercy of our large and mysterious God, we are nothing but a tiny jellyfish in the sea, struggling to stay afloat.

"You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect." Matthew 5:48

What creatures jellyfish are.

Cheers, God bless,
& Merry Christmas.

Austin