Genetically Modified Organisms…Does God Need Help?
As I begin writing on the patio, I glance at the thermometer and it reads 72 degrees outside! Meanwhile, the weather channel is talking about yet another snowstorm on the East coast (Nemo) that will dump two feet of snow in New England… Yes, I am happy to be called a Floridian!
With that said, I pray your New Year is off to a healthy start! This month’s topic, Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs), is one hot subject! I am sure I may hack off a few people in the process, but at least hear me out to the end.
Under Attack
This publication is read internationally, so this next statement need only apply to my fellow Americans. As I am an ordained minister, I can tell you whole-heartedly that many of the uiteedoms, beliefs — and even our Nations Constitution — are under attack. There is currently a push to undermine our great country’s God fearing resolve by deeming our foundational beliefs as antiquated, obsolete, close-minded or out of touch.
With that said, whenever a citizen’s rights are infringed upon, freedom is diluted. Even the term “politically correct speech,” is a subtle way of saying, “You can’t speak your mind,” which is a gross infringement of our first amendment right to freedom of speech! Well I, for one, never being at a loss for words (or passion), refuse to be pulled off center by bourgeois, uber-liberal, secular humanistic manipulation in layman’s terms. I call them as I see them!
Playing God
GMOs are genetically modified organisms… even the name should raise a red flag, or at least make one a trifle skeptical. Man altering God’s design? Gee… that sounds familiar! Someone is actually believing they can improve upon — or even top God Almighty!
“You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven, I will raise my throne ABOVE the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of the assembly, on the utmost heights of the SACRED mountain (Zion). I will ascend above the tops of the clouds, I will make MYSELF like the Most (Almighty) High.’” Isaiah 14:13-14
Make no mistake. Pride is always at the root of this type of thinking and not far behind lies a lust for power, money and control.
The term, Playing God, has become quite popular in the last decade. First, because of stem cell research and now GMOs. There are plenty of arguments both pro and con on the subject of genetically modified organisms. This article will be unashamedly con!
I would ask you to keep one truth in the forefront of your mind as we continue:
God is eternal and infinite; man is temporal and finite.
Therefore, being that God is eternal and sees the end from the beginning, it stands to reason that His unlimited proximity trumps man’s limited linear perspective every time!
God operates out of unquestionable genius, while man hypothesizes from human wisdom, which is at best an educated guess.
Recently, in preparation for the upcoming flu season, our brightest and best scientists, biologists, doctors and infectious disease specialists “forecasted” where they believed the flu would originate. They tried to predict what strain it would be and what vaccine would be most effective. How did they do? The consortium of big brains missed it by a mile — so much that they started prescribing an older medicine, Tamiflu instead…which had no effect whatsoever!
This year’s flu, with whooping cough like symptoms, reached epidemic proportions in the U.S. It ran its course with no real help from the medical community; they can only guess what will happen when they “play God.”
Yet, God always sees the end from the beginning, an obvious advantage. By the time you find this article in Home Cures That Work, you will undoubtedly read other outstanding pieces by my fellow contributors on GMOs that will offer definitive information on history, effects on the body, alternatives and even delicious recipes offering GMO alternatives. (By the way, I have personally experienced Grandma’s cooking…totally legit!) So, I will stay in my lane this month and offer an experiential look from a spiritual lens with a few “real life” stories to inspire — or infuriate you!
“Controlling” Life
As I mentioned previously, I live in Florida (South Florida) where on a good day you can smell Castro’s cigars! LOL! My wife Lillian and I live near the Everglades, a natural wetlands that should never have been built on, industrialized or inhabited by man. It was a thriving ecosystem of its own that organically helped stabilize the aquifer, flora and fauna balance in the state of Florida. Here are just a few facts about this amazing organic wetland, the Everglades:
- It is the largest single marsh system in the U.S.
- Contains a vast spectrum of aquatic birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians, including 56 federally listed endangered species.
- Regulates the water flow.
The reason I am sharing facts about the Everglades with you is to make you soberly aware of the devastating consequences when man tries to circumvent or amend God’s handiwork. As I am sure you are aware, the Amazon rainforest is in dire straits due primarily to over-forestation from man’s hands. The consequences of man’s impact on the land is catastrophic.
Here in the Everglades, after big sugar industries set up shop, the pristine waters were polluted and filled with phosphorous and mercury, dramatically affecting south Florida.
Every time the Army Corp of Engineers would try to solve one problem, two more would spring up in its place. Here are two examples:
- Because the delicate ecosystem was compromised, the alligator mating season was altered, thus increasing their population. So, the Army Corp Of Engineers imported a very aggressive South American crocodile known as the Cayman (Caiman) to knock back the alligator population. Unfortunately, the Cayman liked the Florida gators so much they mated with them, creating 1,200 pound monster Crockogators! This “Frankenscience” or “Humpty Dumpty” syndrome, as I call it, ALWAYS has a downside. Now that you have an example of how fauna can be impacted by one human “miscalculation,” let’s look at the flora.
- Because of a severe drought, which affected the Everglades flora, the Army Corp Of Engineers imported Melaleuca trees to fill in the gaps. The Melaleuca trees are from Australia where they grow wild. But, when they were planted in the Everglades, they quickly overgrew and wiped out several indigenous Florida shrubs. Then, they cross pollinated the Melaleuca with other plants creating a flowering hybrid plant that 90% of the south Florida residents (including pets) are extremely allergic to — and growing out of control!
Obviously, I could go into great detail on the total impact of man’s destruction of the Everglades by playing God, but that would keep me from mentioning public enemy #1: Monsanto.
Monsanto: Sprouting Evil
The company Monsanto has been around since 1901. Today, Monsanto is the world’s largest seed company, a genetically engineered seed company whose crops account for over 91% of the total GMO crops planted worldwide. They started as a chemical company producing herbicides, prescription pharmaceutical drugs and artificial sweeteners. Here are a few of their products:
- PCBs
- DDT
- Dioxin
- Agent orange
Monsanto’s original claim to fame was sodium saccharin, an artificial carcinogenic sweetener known as NutraSweet. Later, they would develop other artificial sweeteners linked to cancer known as aspartame and Equal. In 1997, Monsanto sold off their chemical business to pursue “Life sciences,” or what we call Biotechnology.
Monsanto created their flagship “Round Up Ready” GMO seeds and the result is globally shocking. If you want to do more research on Monsanto, then you can readily investigate their dark side and global impact by going to google and read facts about Monsanto.
I am going to finish this article by sharing one of my passions, raising Monarch butterflies and how Monsanto has single handedly wiped out half of the Monarch population with their lethal man made seeds.
Genetically Modified Butterflies
“Then God said, ‘Let the earth sprout vegetation [not in a test tube], plants yielding seed [naturally, organically], and fruit trees on the earth bearing fruit after their kind [genus, species] WITH SEED IN THEM!’ And it was so. The earth brought forth vegetation [by Gods hand not mans!] plants yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit WITH SEED IN THEM, after their kind; and God saw that IT WAS GOOD!” Genesis 1:11-12
And the same goes for the fauna.
“Then God said, ‘Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind: cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth after their kind,’ and it was so. God [not man] made the beasts of the earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind; and God saw that IT WAS GOOD!” Genesis 1:24-25
Did you catch that? GOD ALMIGHTY said, “It was good.”
If you study the Old Testament, then you will quickly realize that Father God had basically two criteria for judgement, 1) Good and 2) Evil. So, if God said, “It is good” then that is as good as it gets, folks!
And here is something else to chew on. If God is “Almighty,” then that doesn’t leave much “mighty” for man, now does it?
You see, God made the Monarch butterfly, but he didn’t make GMO seeds that would wipe out the Monarch butterflies food and the milkweed plant, now did He? Isn’t it a “no brainer,” my friend?
God’s delicate balance cannot be improved by man anymore than Jim Carey could upstage God in “Bruce Almighty!” When Monsanto engineered their “attempt” at improving corn with their “round up ready” corn seed, they made corn deadly not only to my beloved Monarch butterflies, but created giant malignant tumors in laboratory rats and countless cases of cancer around the globe. Yet Monsanto, because of the enormous amount of money they use to pay off Washington politicians, continues to manufacture and profit from their poison seeds. What can you do?
First, refuse to purchase ANY Genetically Modified PRODUCTS.
Second, EDUCATE YOUR LOVED ONES.
Thirdly, PLANT A BUTTERFLY GARDEN IN YOUR BACKYARD, CHURCH OR BUSINESS.
My wife Lillian and I have been raising Monarch butterflies in our backyard butterfly garden for years. Butterflies are the ultimate picture of death, burial, resurrection and a true transformation. And speaking of transformation, if you want to see a miraculous transformation in your life, then try putting God where He belongs, IN THE HIGHEST PLACE!
- We are not His equal.
- We cannot improve on His creation.
- Our ways are NOT His ways and our thoughts are NOT HIS thoughts.
- He is perfect in ALL of HIS ways.
- HE IS THE ARCHITECT OF ALL CREATION.
- He is the FIRST and the LAST (Alpha and Omega).
- He cannot be bested, improved upon, made obsolete or inferior in any way.
And with all of that said, this Creator of the universe, God Almighty, is in love with you!
Pride is the undoing of humility. It looks toward heaven and says, “I will be more powerful than God.”
Dear reader, though there be many forces in this world, there is only one power: the Maker of heaven and earth, God Almighty.
So, does God need man? No, friend. But if you are pure of heart and honor the difference between God and man…He may just let you help Him. He may even call you, friend.
Till next month,
Michael
Q. Have you ever tried to fix something that wasn’t broken. Did you break it?
Q. Are companies like Monsanto using God’s wisdom or man’s wisdom to create GMOs?
Q. Have you ever watched a caterpillar turn into a butterfly? Are we similar as humans starting as helpless children and growing into beautiful people?
Q. What can you do to bring awareness to your friends and family concerning “Franken Foods” or GMOs?