The Amazing Butterfly

Did you know . . . ?

... that butterflies taste with their feet?

... that butterflies don't have noses? They smell with their antennae!

. . . that butterfly wings are covered with tiny scales? Different colored scales make up the pretty patterns we see.

... that butterflies are cold-blooded? The dark colors on their wings help them absorb the heat from the sun.

... that some butterflies wear camouflage? The wings of many butterflies have colors and patterns that blend in with their natural surroundings to protect them from predators.

... that butterflies can see ultraviolet light? Some scales on butterfly wings reflect light that is invisible to humans. Butterflies use these ultraviolet patterns to recognize each other.

... that a butterfly's mouth is like a drinking straw? That's because butterflies only eat liquid foods, like nectars from flowers or fruit. The mouth, called a proboscis, stays rolled up until it's time to eat.

... that a butterfly wasn't always a butterfly? Every butterfly starts as a tiny egg that hatches into a caterpillar. The caterpillar grows and grows until it's time to build a hardened shell around its body, called a chrysalis. While the caterpillar sleeps inside the chrysalis, its body changes and grows new parts. When it comes out, it has become a butterfly, quite a different creature than a caterpillar!

AMAZING!

Did you know that you can become a new creature, too? You may not grow wings and learn to fly, but God can give you a new life. Do you sometimes do things that make you feel bad inside? Maybe you were mean to someone at school or told a lie to your parents. God calls those bad things sin. Everyone is born knowing how to sin, and everyone who sins must be punished. But God, who loves us, doesn't want us to sin. He wants us to be like Him-loving, kind, and good. Just as a caterpillar becomes a more beautiful butterfly, God can help you become more like Him. God sent his only Son, Jesus, to earth to be a human, just like us, except Jesus never sinned. Even so, He chose to die so that He could pay the death penalty for our sins. Three days after He died, God raised Him back to life again!

Do you want to have a clean, new life? Then just believe in what Jesus did for you. Tell God that you are sorry for your sins and thank Him for sending Jesus to save you. The Bible says, "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" (2 Corinthians 5:17). God will change you on the inside to make you a new, glorious creature-just like a caterpillar changes into a butterfly. To do this, you can pray something like this:

Dear God, I am sorry for the bad things I do. Thank You for sending Jesus to pay the penalty for my sins. Please change me on the inside and help keep me from sin so that I can live a clean and beautiful life for You. Amen.

If you have just prayed to ask God to change you, write your name and address on the lines below and send it to us. We will send you a free booklet to help you grow in your new life with Christ.

© 2002 Good News Publishers. Used by permission.
Translated by permission of Good News Publishers
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