A Most Unlikely Friendship

Red hermit crab, Pagurus sinuatus

Isaiah 55:8
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.”

When we discover the unexpected in the creation, we are reminded that reality is much bigger than our small thoughts. That’s a hint! God Himself says in the Bible, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways” (Isaiah 55:8).

This means that when we study our world, we must keep in mind that nothing forced God to make things a certain way. He was completely free. While God made an orderly creation, His logic and His creativity are far above ours. Those who believe in a Creator learn to expect delightful surprises in God’s world. For those who want to say that the world is a result of mindless natural forces, many of these surprises leave them with little idea of how to explain them according to their system.

One of these surprises is found in the strange relationship between the pagurid crab and the sea anemone. The pagurid crab lives in a shell that is really too small to hold it. So the anemone molds itself to cover the crab and attaches himself to the crab. This gives the crab plenty of freedom or movement because part of his living “shell” is pliable. However, the anemone takes advantage of his position by stealing much of the crab’s food. But if the crab is removed from this species of anemone, the anemone will die.

This strange relationship is vital to both these creatures - so far apart on the evolutionary scale. This relationship makes no sense at all unless there is a Creator!

Photo: Courtesy of Sylke Rohrlach. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license.
Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com

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