I don’t know about you, but I confess that I am a Discovery Channel junkie. I like almost everything that they put out. Recently, they have put together a television series entitled, “Planet Earth.” Their 1 minute trailer still gives me goose bumps even after seeing it 100 times. Two nights ago, I watched the episode entitled, “Ice Worlds.” This episode highlighted what’s going on at the poles of our planet. What I saw, was amazing…but then again, I do have a low wonder threshold.
The Emperor penguin was the key animal that they were following throughout this episode. I confess that I didn’t know much about penguins before the show began, and I guess I can’t say that I know that much more now; however, their existence on the part of our planet that is completely inhospitable to mammal life as we know it was inspiring.
The emperor penguin females lay their eggs before the winter season begins. It takes so much energy for them to lay their eggs, that they can’t possibly incubate them and survive the harsh winter. When winter hits, they pass their eggs off to the daddy’s of their eggs. They must successfully pass off their eggs to their husbands quickly because apparently it only takes seconds for an egg to freeze in the Antarctic. The fathers then hold the egg on the tops of their feet and squat down so their lower abdomen surrounds the egg. The mothers, exhausted from laying the egg, all head off to the ocean in search of warmer waters and food. The fathers stay behind for 3-4 months to endure the harsh winter without food and sunlight in temperatures that reach 60 below with winds up to 100 mph. How do the males survive you ask? They form a huge huddle.
Hundreds of emperor penguins stand together, forsaking all personal space, to share their body heat. Those late to the scrum take the brunt of the harsh conditions, but they need not fear being frostbitten to death. They eventually make it to the center of the huddle because each penguin shares the burden of the wind and cold. They are constantly rotating in and out of the center of this mass penguin huddle.
When the light returns to that dark world, it signals the end of winter and the beginning of spring. The ice melts, allowing the mamma’s to come back to reclaim their egg so the fathers can grab a bite to eat themselves. Each parent shares the duty of raising their young emperor penguin after it is hatched.
Trust me, I am not making this up! The teamwork that these penguins display in order to survive is incredible. Watching this 1 hour episode detailing the life of emperor penguins in the Antarctic inspired me to think about the role of sacrifice in our lives. These penguins are not able to survive without sacrifice. I wonder if the same is true for us. In a world where we can maintain the illusion of self-sufficiency, the truth is that our lives are found in sacrifice. From worship, to work, to family, and even to friendships, our sacrifice is required; however, in sacrificing ourselves for others we oddly enough find life just like the emperor penguins.
Therefore, I urge you, friends, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. (Rom. 12:1)
Pray with me this week that God will help transform our sacrifice into life giving acts for others.
1 comment:
I saw this show too. The way the males shuffle and take turns bracing the harsh winds on the outter side of the huddle is amazing. I am a teacher in South Central LA. I was so inspired that I am going to use the Emperor Penguins to inspire my students this year, to work as a team and to work as one instead of looking for reasons to argue, pick on one another or to isolate others. Thanks for the post.
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