Becoming Fossils

Read: 2 Corinthians 4:7-16

Amir rushed into the house and dropped his backpack. “Look at this!” he said, holding out a fossilized bone. “My teacher said I could borrow it to show Grandpa. Can I show it to him today?”

Mom smiled. “We’ll go over to the nursing home after supper.”

“Mrs. Patterson says only one out of millions of bones becomes a fossil,” Amir told his mother. “It has to be buried in just the right minerals. As the bone decays, the minerals seep into the pores, and bit by bit they replace the bone until there’s no bone left, just hard, strong rock mineral.”

“Really? Grandpa will love to hear about that,” Mom said. “I bet his neighbor, Mr. Wyatt, would like to see that fossil and hear about it too.”

“I doubt it,” said Amir. “He doesn’t like anything—or anybody. He’s too grumpy!” Amir set the fossil on the table. “I know he’s old, but Grandpa isn’t grumpy like that, and he’s even older than Mr. Wyatt.”

Mom thought for a moment. “Grandpa is a lot like that fossil,” she said.

Amir’s eyes grew wide. “He’s not that old!”

Mom laughed. “What I mean is, because Grandpa knows Jesus, God’s goodness and love have seeped into his heart over the course of his life. Just like minerals filled and replaced the materials originally found in the fossil, the Holy Spirit filled Grandpa with love, joy, and peace—all the right things. Now he’s pretty old. He’s growing weak and tired and is starting to forget things, but God’s Spirit is evident in him.”

“And it’s not in Mr. Wyatt?” Amir asked.

“As far as we know, Mr. Wyatt has never trusted Jesus as his Savior,” said Mom. “If he hasn’t, then he doesn’t have the Holy Spirit in his heart working to replace his old self with God’s goodness and love.”

Amir picked up the fossil. “Maybe I should show this to Mr. Wyatt like you said.” He looked at Mom. “And we should tell him how Jesus changes people like minerals change bones.”

“Yes,” Mom replied. “It’s not too late for him. God can still work a miracle in his life.”

–Heather Tekavec

How about you? Is God’s goodness seeping into your heart? Are the desires of your old sinful self being replaced with His love? When you trust in Jesus, the Holy Spirit begins working in your life to make you more like Him. Even though our physical bodies may grow old and weak, we have eternal life with Jesus, and through His Spirit our faith in Him grows stronger each day.

Today's Key Verse: Our human body is wearing out. But our spirits are getting stronger every day. 2 Corinthians 4:16 (NLV)

Today's Key Thought: Jesus changes us