“He hath made everything beautiful in his time.” Ecclesiastes 3:11
Most of us do not think of snails as being beautiful, and some people only think of them as pests in their gardens. But God can see the beauty in everything He made, and sometimes we can, too, if we look at them more closely.
Even the common garden snail has a rather pretty spiral house on its back. This simple-looking shell has three important layers. The outside of its shell is often rough. It protects the shell from scratches and gives it its color. The middle layer is soft and spongy and helps absorb force from predators. The inside layer is smooth and looks like mother-of-pearl. This shell has been designed by the Creator to provide a safe, comfortable home for the snail.
When the common garden snail hatches from its underground egg, it is fully formed, complete with a soft, tiny shell. It must immediately find food. The first thing it eats is its own calcium-rich egg shell, which helps harden its new, soft shell. Although it has poor eyesight, the Creator gave it a strong sense of smell to find what it needs. A snail’s tiny tongue, in a mouth the size of the head of a pin, can have over 25,000 teeth. So, when the snail arrives to what it has smelled, this tongue makes quick work of destroying tender plants. This is one reason why gardeners do not like them.
Another objection to snails is that they leave sticky trails behind them, not appreciated by many people. But this trail is the snail’s safe path through life as its soft belly crawls over rough, dry surfaces. Made by mucus from glands in a snail’s body, this trail makes a soft, elastic cushion that is moist and so tough that it can even crawl over the sharp edge of a razor blade and not be cut! It also helps a snail stick to vertical things, like walls. So it’s both a slide and glue ... who but God would create that for a common snail?
A few things about snails make them popular with some people. Certain kinds of snails are thought to be good food by some people. Also, one snail called the decollete, instead of eating plants, kills and eats garden snails. This one is a real friend to gardeners. And some snail shells are so beautiful that collectors will pay a lot of money for them!
So, the pesky little garden snail is an amazing creation of God’s. But that little tongue that is so destructive ... ! The Bible talks about our tongue, and it can be very destructive, too. Here is one thing God says about it: “The tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. ... Out of the same mouth [proceed] blessing and cursing” (James 3:8,10). The next time you see a snail, ask the Lord to keep your mouth from being destructive, like the snail’s mouth!
Did You Know?
A snail’s tiny tongue, in a mouth the size of the head of a pin, can have over 25,000 teeth.
Messages of God’s Love 5/25/2025