Have you ever heard about the four-eyed fish? It is a very unusual fish that lives in Mexico and northern South America.
Sometimes children tease other children who wear glasses, calling them four-eyes. Those of us who wear glasses don’t have four eyes, and this fish doesn’t either.
The four-eyed fish has two very unusual eyes. Have you ever looked down into water, seen something and reached for it. You
probably missed what you were reaching for on the first try. Water is denser than air, so the reflected light bends as it exits the surface. This makes the object appear to be in a different spot than it really is. Have you been swimming and seen something above the water? It too is in a different place than it looks.
Now let’s think of one more experiment. Get in the water and half submerge your eyes and look at a person standing in the water. This is very difficult because your eyes don’t like this. They don’t like
it because of the different feeling of water and air on the eyes. The eyes also don’t like this feeling because the eyes will focus at different distances. If the person is clear below water, they will appear at a different distance above the water.
That is what is so different about the four-eyed fish. Its eyes are divided in half vertically, so when it floats in the water, it can see clearly in both worlds. It sees insects and predators in the air and food and predators in the water at the same time. It also judges the distance perfectly in both the air and water. This ability doubles its chances for a good meal and also to escape any predator
who wants to eat it.
In some ways, we should be like the four-eyed fish. We live in a world full of evil and difficulties. At the same time, we have a heavenly father who loves us and offers us escapes from the stresses and
temptations of this life. Let’s think about the need to focus on things in this world and spiritual things at the same time.
For Christians, our predators come from the world. Peter in 1 Peter 5:8 warns us that Satan walks around as a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. We need to develop eyes like the Four-eyed fish so we can see the dangers and opportunities every day.
1. We need to focus on the world to avoid sin and to assist the people we interact with from day to day.
2. We need to focus on spiritual things so we
will appreciate the love God has shown us and we can walk in the light of his
commandments.
Let’s remember the four-eyed fish as we struggle
to do God’s commands this week.
Sometimes children tease other children who wear glasses, calling them four-eyes. Those of us who wear glasses don’t have four eyes, and this fish doesn’t either.
The four-eyed fish has two very unusual eyes. Have you ever looked down into water, seen something and reached for it. You
probably missed what you were reaching for on the first try. Water is denser than air, so the reflected light bends as it exits the surface. This makes the object appear to be in a different spot than it really is. Have you been swimming and seen something above the water? It too is in a different place than it looks.
Now let’s think of one more experiment. Get in the water and half submerge your eyes and look at a person standing in the water. This is very difficult because your eyes don’t like this. They don’t like
it because of the different feeling of water and air on the eyes. The eyes also don’t like this feeling because the eyes will focus at different distances. If the person is clear below water, they will appear at a different distance above the water.
That is what is so different about the four-eyed fish. Its eyes are divided in half vertically, so when it floats in the water, it can see clearly in both worlds. It sees insects and predators in the air and food and predators in the water at the same time. It also judges the distance perfectly in both the air and water. This ability doubles its chances for a good meal and also to escape any predator
who wants to eat it.
In some ways, we should be like the four-eyed fish. We live in a world full of evil and difficulties. At the same time, we have a heavenly father who loves us and offers us escapes from the stresses and
temptations of this life. Let’s think about the need to focus on things in this world and spiritual things at the same time.
For Christians, our predators come from the world. Peter in 1 Peter 5:8 warns us that Satan walks around as a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. We need to develop eyes like the Four-eyed fish so we can see the dangers and opportunities every day.
1. We need to focus on the world to avoid sin and to assist the people we interact with from day to day.
2. We need to focus on spiritual things so we
will appreciate the love God has shown us and we can walk in the light of his
commandments.
Let’s remember the four-eyed fish as we struggle
to do God’s commands this week.