Genesis 1:25-26a – And God made the beast of the earth after his kind … and God saw that it was good. And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. (KJV)

Did you know that the blue-footed booby bird with the bluest foot wins the girl, that an anteater has a blue tongue, that a bonga's rusty colour rubs off, that a newborn wallabee weighs less than a paper clip, that the okapi licks its ears, that the binturong smells like popcorn, or that an octopus has three hearts? Me neither!

God created these peculiar creatures. He also created us. That's why a brother-in-law chews with his mouth open, mom has a funny birthmark, and granny hears you getting into the cookie jar!

Animals will continue to have their funny traits, but when we ask Jesus into our lives, the Holy Spirit begins to change some of ours and to create new ones in their place. What a relief!

In the King James Version of Titus 2:14, God calls us "a peculiar people", meaning "beyond usual or special." Isn't it strange that we tolerate or even revel in our own oddities, but we are irritated and annoyed by someone else's?

What unlovable traits in our nearest and dearest might we begin to accept with grace?

Prayer: Lord, help us to accept others the same way that You accept us. In Jesus' name. Amen.

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About the author:

Brenda Wood <brenda.w@nextcom.ca>
Sandycove Acres, Innisfil, Ontario, Canada
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