JESUS IS THE Α & Ω

On the Hunt

ILLUSTRATION

It is during a hunt where co-operation between wolves within a pack is most apparent. A wolf pack may trail a herd of elk, caribou or other large prey for days before making its move. During this time, they are already hunting, assessing the herd, looking for an animal that displays any sign of weakness, and this is just the beginning. Wolves … factor in other conditions that will affect the hunt; weather and terrain can tip the scales in favor of predator or prey. For example, a wide-open plain favors the [prey] , who, if full-grown and healthy, can outrun the fastest wolf. On the other hand, crusty snow or ice favors the wolves [with their round paws] perform like snowshoes and carry them effortlessly over the surface. An experienced wolf is well aware that hoofed animals break through the crust and can become bogged down in deep snow. ¶ Wolves have learned to use these conditions to their advantage. The late wolf biologist, Dr. Gordon Haber speaks of a particular pack in Alaska that he observed following a herd of caribou on a narrow packed trail through deep snow. The wolves know that their mere presence, following close behind, will eventually panic the caribou. When the rearmost caribou spooks, leaving the hard trail and attempting to run to the middle of the herd, it flounders in the snowdrifts. When that happens it is all over. In warm weather, this same pack of wolves changes its tactics, herding the caribou into a dry riverbed where many of [their prey] stumble on the round stones. (On the Hunt)

APPLICATION

Turn to 1 Peter 2:21:

For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. 3:1 But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. 2 And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed. 3 And in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.

Now we see we have a guarantee that there are and will continue to be false teachers in the churches.

Family Thankful for Heirloom Plucked From Sewer

ILLUSTRATION

A Union City, California, family is full of gratitude this Thanksgiving season as a family treasure was retrieved from the bowels (pardon the pun!) of the Union Sanitation District’s sewer lines. ¶ The HUFFINGTON POST reports, “Workers recovered an heirloom from the sewer more than six weeks after the family’s toddler flushed it down the toilet.” ¶ The heirloom–a valuable diamond and sapphire ring–was dearly cherished by the Tapal where it had been passed down from generation to generation. It seems, however, that the family’s 3 year old son didn’t quite appreciate its value as he dropped it into the toilet and proceeded to flush it down. ¶ A search for the ring conducted by a plumber turned up nothing, so they called the USD as a last-ditch effort. That’s when workers Johnny Powell and Victor Vasut, fathers themselves, stepped up to help. ¶ Crews flushed sewer lines in the Tapal’s neighborhood multiple times in search of the ring, and were about to admit defeat when they finally found it on Nov. 14. Per a USD media release, the family treasure had traveled more than a third of a mile from the Tapal’s house, tumbling around corners and nearly falling into a larger sewer line where recovery would have been all but impossible. ¶ “It’s rare to find something like this. It’s like a needle in a haystack,” Collections Supervisor Shawn Nesgis told USD. ¶ After what we assume was a very thorough cleaning, the ring is now back where it belongs.

APPLICATION

Who flushes a valuable family heirloom down a toilet? Someone lacking the maturity to understand what they are doing, that’s who. Learn to value the preciousness of the inheritance you have received in Christ, passed down many generations for you to enjoy.

^{Grenoble, Ryan. “Lost Family Heirloom Found In Sewer Thanks To These Tireless Sanitation Workers.” The Huffington Post, 11/20/2014, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/11/20/ring-found-in-sewer-union-city_n_6186094.html?utm_hp_ref=good-news. From Illustration Exchange, https://illustrationexchange.com/illustrations?book=Ephesians&chapter=1&verse=18}

^{“On the Hunt.” LivingWithWolves.org, accessed March 2022, https://www.livingwithwolves.org/how-wolves-hunt/}