Thousands of the world’s beetles keep hidden from their enemies, often living in almost total darkness. But they are never hidden from the Lord God their Creator who knows about each of them. The death watch beetle no doubt considers itself well hidden as it bores into wood and books. Its stomach has two tiny pockets containing yeast cells that help digest this kind of food.
The larva of the oil beetle, hatching from an egg laid near a flowering plant, is a real hitchhiker. Immediately after birth it climbs to the flower and waits for a bee to arrive. Leaping on the bee’s back and clinging to its hair, it is carried to the hive where it drops off and is assured a great quantity of sweet food as it grows. How do you suppose it learned to do this? It could never discover this arrangement by itself. No, it is part of the wise instinct given by its Creator.
The tiny braconid beetle is a enemy of the tomato hornworn and goes after them in the following way: the female beetle lays eggs under the skin of the worm and the eggs hatch into maggots which eat the flesh of the worm. Tomato growers appreciate this good service.
Beetles are indeed found in strange places, but none stranger than the head standers, living in certain sand dunes along the African seacoast where temperatures reach 150° through the day. Like all living things these beetles require moisture to endure the hot sands, but there is seldom any rain in these deserts. In what way has the Master Creator supplied them with the ability to get water?
Just before dawn as the sea fog moves in from the ocean, the head standers climb to the top of a sand dune. There they lift themselves up on their short front legs and long, spindly hind legs, pointing their heads down and turning their bodies toward the wet breeze. They wait patiently and soon the small water droplets from the fog wet their hard backs, and drops roll down their legs into their mouths for a cool, pure drink of water! None of these beetles could achieve their surprising ways of life by gradually developing them over centuries of time, for the species could not have survived until fully equipped for their amazing performances which sustain life.
How nice to know that the Lord God, the Creator of all, had even the needs of lowly beetles in His purposes when placing them on the earth.
We know every human being is more wonderfully made than any other creature. In addition we have an everlasting soul, a mind and a heart that can learn of and accept God’s wonderful love. That love has provided an eternal home in heaven, assured for all who admit themselves to be sinners and accept the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour. Have you done this?
ML-11/25/1984