Sometimes a very visual demonstration drives home the reality of scripture so much better than just talking about it. 

Scriptures:
 Psalm 101:7 - Practicing Deceit
Job 36:24 - Magnify the LORD
Ecclesiastes 4:9 - Balanced
Job 37:13 - Swirling Clouds
Job 38:4 - Our Creator God
Psalm 147:4 - God Knows My Name
Matthew 7:24 - Anchored to the Rock

***Practicing Deceit
No one who practices deceit shall dwell in my house; . . . Psalm 101:7

Materials: Things that look like other things, i.e. a rock that looks like a potato, a super ball that looks like a rock, a book that has a hollowed out center; a knife that looks like a bullet, etc.

There are some very clever gadgets out there that strike our fancy because they look like they are one thing, but they are actually something else. And sometimes these things can be useful. Take for instance, a college textbook that has been hollowed out. Before you open the book, it looks as if it’d be a dull textbook with limited value. (You certainly can’t resell them for anywhere close to what you paid for them originally!!) On the shelf, it blends right in with the other books. But when you open the cover, you discover a space that is perfect for hiding valuables from someone who might come looking.

The other day when I was digging potatoes, I found another look alike. Right next to the potato was a rock that looked like the potatoes around it, knobs and all.

So what is Psalm 101:7 talking about? And should I be concerned that there’s something attractive to me about these look alike? It all has to do with intent. Did the rock intend to deceive me? No. Was it trying to do harm to me? No. It’s just a fun example of coincidence. The hollowed out textbook is meant to deceive someone else - as protection from their evil intents towards me. There’s nothing wrong with protecting yourself in this way. The bouncy ball rock is not a bad thing in and of itself. It’s just a silly toy.

The thing is that if someone wants to harm you they can find all sorts of ways to do so, to trick you into believing something is one thing when it just isn’t. You can’t always believe what you see or hear in a world where people lie intentionally to hurt you.

God is very clear about this! If you are intentionally trying to deceive other people to hurt them, you will not be in God’s kingdom. Think about that next time before you try to pull the wool over someone’s eyes. You’ve got to know where the line is between fun and hurt. And what you think is funny may not really be funny at all.


***Magnify the LORD
Remember to magnify His work, Of which men have sung. (NKJV) Job 36:24

Materials: paperclip with a small closed circle bent into one end (Source: 77 Science Activities for Illustrating Bible Lessons, Donald B DeYoung, pgs. 82-84), water, glass bottle, plastic bottle (both filled with water)

A couple of weeks ago, one of the students during the sabbath lesson commented that you can use a bottle of water as a magnifying glass. (Of course, he’s homeschooled! 😁 ) But what makes it a magnifier? Is it the curvature of the glass? Does this also work with a plastic bottle? Can it be empty? Or is it the water which acts as the magnifying glass? Well, empty bottles don’t work. But either plastic bottles or glass bottles filled with water will work. It’s the water which acts as the magnifier!!

We can see this using a paper clip. We straighten out one end and then bend it into a circle with a pair of needle-nose pliers. Dip the circle into the water. Surface tension will keep the water in the circle and allow you to use it as a magnifier.

Water is an amazing substance!! It has some unique properties: its polarity, its high boiling point, its less dense solid state vs liquid state, its low freezing point, its high specific heat - to name just a few! Because water boils at a relatively high temperature (given its size) and freezes at a relatively low temperature, water stabilizes life. Not only that but because of water’s high specific heat property, it takes a lot more energy to raise the temperature of water 1º. That’s important because living things are made of such a high percentage of water. (Up to 60% of the human adult body is water. According to H.H. Mitchell, Journal of Biological Chemistry 158, the brain and heart are composed of 73% water, and the lungs are about 83% water. The skin contains 64% water, muscles and kidneys are 79%, and even the bones are watery: 31%. Source: www.usgs.gov)

So water sustains life. Water is essential in getting things to grow. Water protects life. Water can be used as a solvent and a magnifier. We literally could talk about water for weeks and explore its properties. . . . So isn’t it interesting that water is a metaphor for the living water that Jesus referred to in John 4:10 and in John 7:37 - the Holy Spirit!! The Holy Spirit protects us, guides us, is life-giving, affirms to us that we are the children of God, and translates our prayers to God. And the Holy Spirit helps us to magnify God - to see God’s work in our lives, to praise Him for His goodness and provision, to see God’s character, His goodness and love.

The next time you get a drink of water, take a bath, wash the dishes, or water your tomato plants, remember to magnify God for His creation which points us right back to Him.


***Balanced
Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. Ecclesiastes 4:9

Materials: pen, potato, two forks

Let’s say, just for fun, that I have a pen and a potato. The potato and pen represent life and potential for balancing everything in life so that life works. Christopher is the fork and he is going to grab hold of life. He’s going to have a rather difficult time getting everything balanced! We know this because God said that it is not good for man to be alone. Man needs a helpmeet. He needs someone to balance him out. So Alyssa and Christopher, both being forks, are going to grab hold of life. They have a better chance of balancing things out if they work together than Christopher would by himself. We can see that if we stick the forks into the potato so that all three are lined up in a straight line. But if Alyssa and Christopher are grounded in the Lord Jesus Christ, something amazing happens. We see this when we put the forks into the potatoes so that they have a lower center of gravity. The potato is now able to balance on the pen. Christopher and Alyssa can balance all the good and bad, their strengths and weaknesses, and all the things life will throw at them, if their center of gravity is lower - aka, they are grounded on the Lord Jesus Christ.

Being balanced is a very important aspect to consider when beginning a marriage or a work partnership or a group project. Solomon was absolutely correct when he said that “two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil” (Ecclesiastes 4:9). That balance in personality, in goals, in ambitious, in worldview - it’s all so much stronger if Jesus Christ is the center of your relationship.

Something to think about the next time you pick up your fork to eat a  potato.


Resource: 77 Science Activities for Illustrating Bible Lessons, Donald B. DeYoung, 2013, pg. 253.




***Swirling Clouds
Whether for correction or for his land or for love, he causes it to happen. Job 37:13

Materials: jar, water, food coloring

Clouds can be so much fun to watch! Can you remember a time when you saw a formation that reminded you of something? A duck? A dinosaur? A cat wearing a top hat? But clouds can also be menacing, threatening, and downright scary. The mystery of how air flows has yet to be unlocked by meteorologists. That’s why they can make weather predictions and be wrong so much of the time! They just haven’t figured out all the variables involved in making air currents move the way they do. Some of the old timers’ and their descriptions of the clouds are more accurate than the meteorologists! My great-grandmother said if there was enough blue sky to make a Dutchman’s britches, the clouds would break up. Every time, I find myself watching the sky to see if it happens that way.

I love watching the clouds. They are so varied. They moved so interestingly. They can be so many different colors. And sometimes they bring much-needed rain. Growing up in a part of the country where rain is a precious commodity, I rarely mind the rain. The longer I’m in Missouri, however, the more I realize there are limits to how much rain is actually beneficial! But I’m always very aware that God is the One who controls the clouds and the rain.

Look at this passage from Job 37 (not just the memory verse).

11He loads the thick cloud with moisture; the clouds scatter his lightning.
12They turn around and around by his guidance,
to accomplish all that he commands them on the face of the habitable world.
13Whether for correction or for his land or for love, he causes it to happen.

The memory verse indicates that sometimes God can send storms, not not send rain, as a punishment on the land and the people. That’s scary! Having seen the destruction of a tornado and hurricanes, I’m quite sure I don’t want God’s punishment in the form of a storm. But it also indicates that God send rain for the land because He loves the inhabitants. He knows they need the life-giving moisture in the clouds.

The next time you find yourself watching the clouds, remember the One who made them. Praise Him for His love. Thank Him for His provision. And pray that He doesn’t send the storms in His wrath, but that He is merciful to those who love Him and seek Him wholeheartedly.

Resource: 77 Science Activities for Illustrating Bible Lessons, Donald B. De Young, pgs. 85-87.


**Our Creator God
Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. Job 38:4

Materials: apple, cutting board, butcher knife, pinecones, pine needles, pineapple, tea boxes

There is a series of numbers called the Fibonacci sequence: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233, 377, 610, 897, 1597 etc. The number is found by adding the previous two numbers together. (Jonathan can rattle off the first dozen or two without taking a breath!) Leonardo Fibonacci recognized this set of numbers from observing nature, and subsequently came up with the formula for finding this sequence. For instance, flower petals often come in clusters of 5 or 8, i.e. asters often have 21 petals, buttercups have 5, iris have 3. You can find them in 4 or 9, but they are less common. Pine needle clusters almost always grow in clusters of twos, threes, or fives. The center of an apple has five points. Pinecones likely have distinct spirals of 5, 8, or 13.
It’s not just nature!

The ratio of the fibonacci numbers (especially as they get larger) approaches what is called the golden ratio. For example, you get a ratio if one side is 5 and the other is eight. In the case of a box of tea bags, one side is 3 and the other is 5. This ratio is extremely pleasing to the eye and is used as a marketing tool. But that this is pleasing is not a new awareness; it was widely used in Renaissance architecture, but was also used as far back as the Acropolis of Athens and the Greek Pantheon. In fact, the fibonacci numbers are seen all around us in art and in science. For example, there are 8 notes in an octave, with five black keys and eight white keys.

It is very cool that Leonardo Fibonacci recognized this pattern (although he’s not the first. It’s documented in Sanskrit). But it’s even more amazing that God chose to put His fingerprint on creation in this way. There’s no way this could have happened by chance. It’s another example of what happens when you begin to really examine what can be seen in nature: you are left with the indisputable evidence of the Creator. Keep your eyes open for the fibonacci sequence - and then praise the One who displays His fingerprint in what He has made.


Resource: 77 Science Activities for Illustrating Bible Lessons, by Donald B. DeYoung, 2013, pg. 88-92.


**God Knows My Name
He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names. Psalm 147:4

Materials: a jar of paper origami stars

A few years ago, Christopher became really interested in folding origami. He made a jar full of 3-D paper stars. There are quite a few in this peanut butter jar, but imagine if Christopher gave each of them a name. Giving them a name wouldn’t be too hard; remembering which star was which would be the trick! How do you tell them apart? There are an awful lot of similar stars in that jar!!

Psalm 147:4 says that God is the One created the stars. He’s the One who creates new stars and causes the old ones to burn out or go nova. That’s amazing all in itself because it’s estimated that there are 1 billion trillion stars in the observable universe. That’s 1 x 1021 or 1 with 21 zeros after it. To put it another way, there are as many stars in the observable universe as the number of grains of sand on all of the Earth’s beaches. Since Earth’s population is about 7.7 billion people, that’s about 130 billion stars for every person who is alive today! I can’t even call my three children by their right names some days. I can not even imagine trying to count all of the stars that would be mine, give them all names, and keep them all straight. Can you even think of 130 billion names?

Our Great God, our Heavenly Father, numbers the stars; He knows them by name. He knows when one sparrow dies. Then Jesus compares God’s care of the birds to how He cares about us: we are so precious to Him that Luke 12:7 says that “the very hairs of your head are all numbered.” Jesus goes on to say, “Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.”

The next time you are out at night, counting the stars, or the next time you see a sparrow (or other bird), remember how much God loves you. I consider them hugs from my Heavenly Father, a special reminder for me. We can all use more hugs from our Heavenly Father.


**Anchored to the Rock
Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. Matthew 7:24

Materials: tray, container of water, towels, sand, two fist-sized rocks, houses from Monopoly, glue gun

“A wise man built his house upon a rock and the rain came a’tumblin’ down.
The rain came down and the floods came up and the house on the rock stood firm.

A foolish man built his house upon the sand and the rain came a’tumblin’ down.
The rain came down and the floods came up and the house on the sand went smash.”

We sing this kids’ song. The tune is catchy. It’s fun. But have you really thought about what it means? If I put a Monopoly house on a pile of sand and then sprinkle water on it, what will happen? Given enough water, the sand will wash away and the house will be destroyed. (Since it’s a plastic house, it’s not destroyed; it’s tipped over, perhaps even upside down. But you get the idea.)  

So what if I put a Monopoly house on a rock. I can sprinkle water on it and as long as it’s not a deluge, it won’t be tipped over. But what if it is a deluge? Or what if it’s another storm - like a tornado or a hurricane or an earthquake? If the house is just sitting on the rock, it’s not secure. It has an appearance of security, but it is not truly secure.

But what if I used a hot glue gun to glue the Monopoly house to the rock? Now what can I throw against that house which would cause it to be tipped over or destroyed. It would take a hammer, wouldn’t it!!

I suspect there are Christians out there who fall into all three categories. There are the house-on-the-sand Christians who say they are Christians, but their foundation on the Word of God is shaky. At the first storm in life, they are in trouble! There are the house-on-the-rock Christians. They look like they are set solidly, but the storms of life can be relentless. A huge storm, a large wave, can knock them over. The appearance doesn’t count for anything when the chips are down.

The Christian who is anchored to Jesus Christ is the only one of the three who can endure. Their trust and faith is not in themselves, but in the One who can save them from any and all storms in life. And because that’s where their faith and trust is, they live their lives as servants of the Most High, children of God, ambassadors for Christ. Their lives reflect God’s ways so that no one has to wonder if they’re a Christian.

Do you understand that part of building a house is having a firm foundation? Sand doesn’t give a firm foundation. There’s nothing to anchor to. Setting your house on a rock isn’t the definition of building a house any more than looking like a Christian makes you a true Christian. Make sure your foundation is secure.  Anchor your house to the Rock. I want you to not just sing “On Christ the solid rock I stand;” I want your feet to be anchored there!

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