Friendly Fin

Thanks for joining us for today's encouragement from Our Daily Bread. Our reading is titled, Friendly Fin, and it was written by Glenn Pakiam. A marine biologist was swimming near the Cook Islands in the South Pacific when a 50,000-pound humpback whale suddenly appeared and tucked her under its fin. The woman thought her life was over, but after swimming slowly in circles, the whale let her go.

It's then that the biologist saw a tiger shark leaving the area. The woman believes the whale had been protecting her, keeping her from danger. In a world of danger, we're called to watch out for others.

But you might ask yourself, should I really be expected to be responsible for someone else? Or in Cain's words in Genesis chapter 4, Am I my brother's keeper? The rest of the Old Testament resounds with the thunderous response, Yes. Just as Adam was to care for the garden, so Cain was to care for Abel. Israel was to keep watch over the vulnerable and care for the needy.

Yet they did the opposite, exploiting the people, oppressing the poor, and abdicating the calling to love their neighbors as themselves. But in the Cain and Abel story, God continued to watch over Cain, even after he was sent away. God did for Cain what Cain should have done for Abel. It's a beautiful foreshadowing of what God in Jesus would come to do for us.

Jesus keeps us in his care, and he empowers us to go and do likewise for others. Today's Our Daily Bread devotional scripture reading is from Genesis chapter 4, verses 8 through 16. Now Cain said to his brother Abel, Let's go out to the field. While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him. Then the Lord said to Cain, Where is your brother Abel? I don't know, he replied, Am I my brother's keeper? The Lord said, What have you done? Listen, your brother's blood cries out to me from the ground.

Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth. Cain said to the Lord, My punishment is more than I can bear. Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence.

I will be a restless wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me. But the Lord said to him, Not so. Anyone who kills Cain will suffer vengeance seven times over. Then the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him.

So Cain went out from the Lord's presence and lived in the land of Nod, east of Eden. Let's pray. Father, thank you for your care for us and your assurance that no matter what we may be facing, you are always with us in the midst of it. We pray that you would make us aware of the needs of those around us and prompt us to reach out and care for them as we are able. Thank you, Lord. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. This encouragement was provided by Our Daily Bread Ministries.