Underwater Wonders

“There is the sea, vast and spacious, teeming with creatures beyond number—living things both large and small. There the ships go to and fro, and Leviathan, which you formed to frolic there.” (Psalm 104:25-26, NIV)

“God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.” (Genesis 1:21, NIV)

“The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land.” (Psalm 95:5, NIV)

Surrounded by blue, I watch as a torrent of yellow-striped fish races across my field of view. The school swims one way, then another, before turning to swarm over a mounding coral colony the size of a small car. Along this reef, corals stand in enormous lumps along the benthos beneath me, reaching with florescent-tipped polyps toward light that cascades from the moving surface. A pink-shelled crab scuttles through the scene, clipping his claws in greeting. A family of blue tangs frolics through a thicket of purple sea fans, as fronds of green algae bend to and fro in the rush of the current. This coral reef ecosystem is alive with color and motion, testifying to the creativity of its Creator.

As a professional marine biologist, working in the underwater environment is my job. As a Christian, witnessing the wonders of God’s creation is my calling, and when reading the Bible, I often notice verses that describe the ocean. “There is the sea, vast and spacious, teeming with creatures beyond number—living things both large and small” (Psalm 104:25). It’s amazing to realize that God made the ocean and all the creatures it contains with intentional biodiversity.

In science, biodiversity describes the variety of living things within an environment. The more different kinds of species there are in a place, the more biodiverse it is. And interestingly, God designed environments so that they are strengthened by biodiversity. The more kinds of different living things that occupy an ecosystem, the more healthy, stable, and resilient that ecosystem can be. God’s design of biodiversity provides a balancing effect in underwater communities, like coral reefs.

When looking at the biodiverse creatures on a reef, we are reminded of God’s creative power over all of creation. “The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land” (Psalm 95:5). Imagine the care and delight that God put into making the tropical ecosystem—the array of creatures that inhabit a reef, waves frothing with sea-foam against a beach, and golden sunlight shining off palm fronds that dot the islands. This variety and beauty of creation provide us with a clearer understanding of God’s character.

Just as a marine biologist who spends time in the ocean learns the value of biodiversity, we can dive into a deeper understanding of who God really is by delighting in his creativity. He has made wonders for us to explore. May we dive ever deeper into understanding the character of God, the Creator of the sea and everything in it.