The Mantis Shrimp – One Tough Guy!
“O LORD, how many are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all; the earth is full of Your possessions.”
— Psalm 104:24 NASB
Hi Men:
I pray you kept you eyes on Jesus this week. Who doesn’t like the hymn written by Helen Lemmel? Amazingly, she lived to be almost 98. Her words in the chorus below are more profound than even in the days we now live, but also these words in the last stanza: Then go to a world that is dying, His perfect salvation to tell! What about it, men….. let’s do lt..!!
Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full, in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.
~ Helen Lemmel (1863-1961) YouTube by Alan Jackson
Let’s also commit to “Abide in Christ.” Your are all familiar with John 15:4-5
“Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do NOTHING.” [My emphasis]
So let’s take Spurgeon’s quote below to heart:
“To abide in Christ is to persevere in believing Him and loving Him; it is to remain in spiritual union with Him. If you do not so abide, you have no right to reckon yourself a Christian. Union to Christ is the foundation of the Christian life, and continued union is its proof.”
— Charles Spurgeon, Sermon on John 15:4
PHOTO ABOVE
YIKES! This little guy will blow your mind. I actually knew nothing about it, until my son shared some stats on the Mantis Shrimp while he was playing an instructional card game with his 2 daughters. Here are a few facts:
- Punch Like a Bullet – Its club strikes at 50 mph underwater, faster than a .22 caliber bullet, with over 200 pounds of force. It can smash crab shells and even shatter aquarium glass.
- Double Impact – The strike moves so fast it boils the surrounding water, creating bubbles that collapse (cavitation), delivering a second lethal blow. The heat generated is as hot as the sun’s surface
- Shell Crusher – It smashes crabs, snails, and even punches holes in aquarium glass.
- Endurance Weapon – Can strike tens of thousands of times over months without damaging its own club.
- Super-Tough Armor – Its striking appendage has three specialized layers
- Color Vision Beyond Imagination – Humans have 3 types of color receptors (red, green, blue). The mantis shrimp? 12 to 16 types — allowing it to see colors we cannot even imagine. It also has independent eye movement
- Three-in-One Eyes – Each eye can see depth on its own (monocular range finding) and also work together (binocular vision) — giving it extraordinary tracking ability.
- Military Interest – As you can imagine, the military has been studying the Mantis for years, like developing tougher body armor for soldiers.
Ok, there is so much more. If interested, Google Mantis Shrimp.. You will be surprised. Here is one of many, you might enjoy: Mantis Shrimp Packs a Punch (YouTube 3:24 min)
IN YOUR OWN BACKYARD OR AT
EDDIE’S MEXICAN RESTAURANT
Like the line in Helen Lemmel’s stanza, “Then go to a world that is dying, His perfect salvation to tell”—I’ve had several great discussions lately. A few have been at breakfast cafés, and one was recently at a Mexican restaurant. When my son and his family were in town, we all went to Eddie’s. Our waiter, Andrew, did a great job taking care of our table—especially with the extra effort and detail needed when serving our grandkids.
After the bill was paid, I stayed back and asked the busgirl where Andrew was. She went around the corner and got him. He was on a short break, so we were able to visit briefly. I had all my tracts with me and explained them. It was remarkable—he was leaning in on every word. When I said, “This is the gospel (‘Steps to Peace with God’), and like it did for me, it will literally change your life,” he let out what sounded like a deep groan and then asked, “Are you giving these to me?” I said yes, and he took them right out of my hands. We hugged, and I told him, “I hope we see each other again.” He said, “Me too.”
It truly felt like the Holy Spirit had him “keyed up.” We don’t know who God has set in our path, but let’s commit to being faithful with the opportunities that God places in front of us…..
Keep praying that Ephesians 2:10 will be seared into your heart and mind during your prayer time—pleading with the Lord to give you everything He has for you, not what other people have for you. They may very well be “playing with your chips!”
In His Grip,
Dan
(Gal 2:20)
Men: Do you believe this?
“When you become children of God you cease to be able to make unilateral decisions based on what you think best. You are God’s slaves; you exist to do His will”
Unilateral Decisions – Day 215 Red Book
The purpose of these devotionals is to help you think Biblically.
Solomon said, “As a man thinks, so is he”
1 – Lev 25:55
Here is the PDF
Great letter from Lee & Miltinnie – July 2025
Here is a larger image of their letter
ISLAM
DO YOU WANT TO KNOW A LITTLE BIT MORE OR
CONTINUE TO STRATCH YOUR HEAD?
Difference between Christianity and Islam
One of our dear brothers just sent me this 58 Sec video. Please watch it:
Why Muslims Are Seeing Visions Of Jesus (58 Sec)
In a past Friday Letter, I included this section below on the Qur’an (The Holy Book of Islam)
Men: This 3 minute video was sent to me by my friend and pastor buddy ministering in Pakistan – he is Pakistani and was born in Pakistan! I couldn’t agree more with the statements made in the video. The “Root of Terrorism” is the Qur’an.
———
You will find this interesting. A dear brother by the name of David Witt, showed me a Qur’an almost 30 years ago (see mine below), I had to call Darussalam Publishing in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to order one. They asked me if they were sending it to a correctional institution. Why? Because the only people buying these books at the time were the guys in prison tied to the Nation of Islam (Louis Farrakhan). The Qur’an is a warriors manual.
By the way, check out David Witt’s ministry: SpiritOfMartyrdom.com/
Lord, don’t let me ever complain about the weather in Las Vegas
CHINA FLOODS
Check out these videos of the floods in China this week. Although I have not verified it, one source (the BBC) stated that in some areas they received 1 year of rain in 8 hours.
[Don’t forget this verse from Is 45:7]
“The One forming light and creating darkness,
Causing well-being and creating calamity;
I am the Lord who does all these.”
Read Day 40 “God Brings Calamity”
A Few Good Quotes
“The greatest proof of Christianity for others is not how far a man can logically analyze his reasons for believing, but how far in practice he will stake his life on his belief.” ~ T.S. Eliot
“We must praise Your goodness that You have left nothing undone to draw us to Yourself. But one thing we ask of You, our God, not to cease to work in our improvement. Let us tend towards You, no matter by what means, and be fruitful in good works, for the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord.” ~ Ludwig van Beethoven
“While prophetic interpretations are fascinating, don’t let them become a distraction from your commission: to preach the gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15). We have too many who run from conference to conference, filling their minds with theories to the point where they have neither time nor concern for those who could be snatched any moment into eternal damnation.” ~ Anonymous
DO YOU BELIEVE THIS?
