Blobfish

“…from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.” [Ephesians 4:16]

One of the weirdest of all fish in the world is the strange-looking blobfish. This deep-sea fish lives in the waters off the coasts of mainland Australia and Tasmania. If you think you’ve had a bad day, just take a look at this interesting fellow. He actually does look like a blob! The sad expression on the face of this fish might match the overfishing by trawlers that are threatening to make it extinct. Humans rarely see this deep-sea creature that grows to about 12 inches in length. It’s not edible, but happens to get caught by fishermen seeking other ocean organisms at the same depth.

The female blobfish lays thousands of eggs at one time and will stay with her eggs, floating above them or sometimes actually resting on them. It’s not uncommon to find a group of blobfish mothers watching over their eggs right next to each other. Scientists are unsure if they strategically hang together for protection or if they are simply too lazy to move away from each other. The blobfish is not one known for expending a lot of energy on anything.

Blobfish live between 2,000 and 3,900 feet deep. There is a lot of pressure on sea creatures at this depth. Instead of using a gas-filled bladder to maintain buoyancy, the blobfish has flesh that is like gelatin that is a little less dense than water. This keeps the blobfish floating just above the ocean floor, so it does not expend a lot of energy while slowly moving along the bottom looking for crabs and sea pens to eat. Without much muscle, this fish sort of just eats whatever happens to float in front of its face.

The blobfish describes how some Christians live. Instead of actively seeking spiritual food, they eat just about anything that floats by. And when you look at the blobfish, a fish with virtually no muscle, you can understand why some Christians are weak. In order to stay healthy as a church, the apostle Paul encourages every member to exercise their spiritual gifts (see 1.Corinthians 12). When some members do not use their God-given gifts, the body becomes weak. So use your gifts to build up the body of Christ. Don’t let your church turn into a… blob!