Views: 76

“The Man-Eaters of Njombe” were the most prolific of the man-eaters. This pride of 15 lions claimed hundreds of lives, estimated to be as many as 1,500 lives, in southern Tanzania between 1932 and 1947.

George Rushby, the British game warden charged with stopping them, wrote,

‘The renowned man-eaters of Tsavo were very small fry compared to what these proved to be.’

Prior to the pride’s bloody spree, the colonial government had reduced the numbers of prey animals in the area in an effort to control a rinderpest outbreak that was destroying cattle herds. The hungry lions quickly settled on human flesh as a substitute. Unlike most lions, the Njombe pride did its killing in the afternoon, using the night hours to travel as far as 15 or 20 miles to an unsuspecting village. Rushby believed that the cats actually used a relay system to drag bodies into the safety of the bush. He finally hunted down and shot the lions.

Human history is replete with many stories like the above where animals of prey turn on humans,  but that was not God’s original plan.

What was God’s plan, and what happened?

READ Genesis 1:26-31, 2:17-19

Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”  So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.  Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

And God said, “See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food”; and it was so. Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day. (Genesis 1:26-31 NKJV)

Then to Adam He said, “Because you have heeded the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it’:

“Cursed is the ground for your sake; In toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life.
Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, and you shall eat the herb of the field.
In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground.
For out of it you were taken, for dust you are, and to dust you shall return.” (Genesis 3:17-19 NKJV)

Gods original plan was not for animals to eat humans; not even to eat other animals! This was very clearly stated in Genesis 1:30

Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food”; and it was so.(Genesis 1:30 NKJV)

But when man fell and God cursed the ground, everything changed! The harmony man that existed between man and his environment changed absolutely! Look at this:

So the Lord God said to the serpent: “Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field.”(Genesis 3:14)

The use of the comparative “more than”, in the above shows that the other animals were also cursed! Everything just changed and the entire world became dysfunctional!

Since then, God has been making every effort to bring man back to himself. He used priests, He used prophets, He used judges, and He used kings!

Then He sent His only begotten son.

“But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.” (Galatians 4:4-5)

God’s intention to restore everything to how He destined them originally, is still on course; and envisages it to look like this:

“The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the young goat,
The calf and the young lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them.
The cow and the bear shall graze; their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play by the cobra’s hole, and the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper’s den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain,
For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11:6-9)

The harsh environment we experience now, will be gone when God completes His plan of redemption; and there would be absolute peace on earth!

God has said it, and He will do it. We anticipate the new dawn.

MEMORY VERSE

“They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11:9)

QUESTIONS

1. Are you despaired by the evil and harshness of our world today?  

2. Why not hide yourself in the comfort of Christ Jesus, until God completes his plan, restores the earth and makes everything new?

PRAYER TIP

Almighty Father, please hide us in You until You make everything new.

Written by:

BENNY MALM

For:

TESTIMONY DEVOTIONAL

Credits: “The Most Ferocious Man-Eating Lions”, Smithsonian Magazine (www.smithsonianmag.com)

URGENT CALL

If you don’t know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Lord and Personal Savior, you need to do that now!

Please visit “The Believer’s Prayer” for guidance.

We will be happy to hear from you through the contact information on that page. God bless you.

🌹 SPECIAL GRATITUDE 🌹

Thank you for visiting the Testimony Devotional Website. 

We would not have gotten here without your prayers, goodwill and overall support. We are grateful, and humbled. 🙇🏽‍♀️🙇🏽‍♀️🙇🏽‍♀️🙇🏽‍♀️🙇🏽‍♀️🙇🏽‍♀️

We thank God for counting us worthy to share in His Great Commission.