GOD THE ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONIST!!!

 ‘Parrotfish’ photo by Richard Zerpe, Wikimedia Commons,  CC BY 2.0.

Have you ever looked at God’s creation and wondered if He was an ‘Abstract Expressionist?’
The Parrotfish (See photo above) certainly makes me wonder!!  Abstract expressionism ‘aims at subjective emotional expression with particular emphasis on the creative spontaneous act.’  (New Oxford Dictionary).  His fish and tropical bird ‘painting’ certainly looks ‘spontaneous! His creation has the look of a gigantic canvas that explores all the vast possibilities of shape and color. 
Isn’t it wonderful!  

We could have lost this amazing colorful fish due to an assumption!  You know the common expression, ‘It’s dangerous to assume because you might make an “ass” out of “you” and “me”. (Hope you don’t find that offensive).  It is true!  Because the Parrotfish, named for its parrot like colors and beak-like mouth, feeds on coral.  They are prolific eaters and excreters.  (What goes in must come out).  If you listen underwater, you can hear them crunching on coral.  Their powerful beak can munch at 20 bites per minute.  The coral they bite off the reef is ground up by 15 rows of about 1,000 continuous growing teeth (wouldn’t that be nice).  What comes out is the digested remains of the coral’s stony exoskeleton, i.e., white sand!  Next time you’re sunbathing at the beach, remember what you are laying on!!!!!!!   One full grown Parrotfish, up to 4 feet in length, they say, can grind up enough coral to produce 800 to 1000 pounds of soft ‘clean’ white sand per year!

Seeing the Parrot fish bite off chunks of coral, the biologists just ‘assumed’ that they were destroying the reef!  WRONG!  They recently, carefully examined the facts and determined that the fish was actually beneficial to the reef!  When it bites off a chunk of coral, it is actually after the algae that grows inside coral polyps.  They are algae eaters.  Excess algae can smother coral and prevent it from growing.  You can see why the original assumption was indeed ‘dangerous’ especially to the Parrotfish.

Think of the Apostle Paul!  He ‘assumed’ that he was doing the right thing by persecuting Christians.  WRONG!  This assumption was definitely dangerous for Christians.  BUT, thank God that He had mercy on this ‘zealous’ man and met him on the road to Damascus.  Acts 9:3-5. Paul loved God, and learned the truth when God knocked him off his horse and spoke to him.  From that day forward, he realized that his assumptions were wrong and began serving God, responsible for writing 13 of the 27 books of the New Testament and bringing the Gospel to the Gentiles!  

His story reminds us of the assurance we have in Jesus!!!  Even if we are caught up in an assumption, God loves us and will work for out good.   Romans 8:28 reminds us, ‘we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.’ 

GOD WILL WORK FOR YOUR GOOD TOO!

Just as He did for the Parrotfish and the Apostle Paul!