In the last issue we left 30 million red crabs with a long trip ahead of them. They were ready to start on their annual migration from their forest homes.
In the dim light of early morning, the large male crabs start out ahead of the rest. The females follow close behind. They leave with the first rainfall of the rainy season, so everything is soaking wet from the heavy rainfall provided by a watchful Creator, which suits the crabs.
Leaving the high forest area, they soon come upon homes in their way. A woman may wake up during the night, hearing strange noises in the kitchen. Hurrying to discover the cause, she finds half a dozen crabs crawling through the house. How did they get in? Someone had left the back door partly open to cool the house, and when the crabs came to the open door, they just walked right in. They will not turn to the right or left if there is an opportunity to go straight ahead.
There are places where the edge of the forest ends at the top of high rocky cliffs. This doesn’t stop the crabs’ migration. Down they go, inch by inch, holding on to any supports they find as they creep downward. Soon the entire cliffside is solid red from the hundreds of thousands of crabs on it. Here and there some lose their grip or the stone they hold onto gives way. Down they plunge to their death. The others eventually reach bottom, followed by an endless mass of more crawling red.
At the bottom there are other hazards. A railroad track may need to be crossed. If a train comes by, those on the rails at that moment quickly meet a sad end to their journey. Also, regardless of how hot the steel rails have become in the sunlight, they keep on going. Many are burned on tender parts of their bodies as they crawl over the hot rails, and they also soon die. Officials in Australia close some roads and do many other things to protect the crabs during these migrations, so many more are kept from dying that would otherwise be killed.
You might ask, “If God is watching over them, why does He let them die?” The answer is not that God does not care, for the lead verse tells of His compassion and mercies over all He has made. But Adam’s sin in disobeying God in the Garden of Eden brought death into the world — to humans and all other parts of the creation. But Romans 6:2323For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 6:23) has a wonderful message: “The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Have you accepted this loving gift of life?
(to be continued)
Messages of God’s Love 7/10/2022