The old adage, “she had to kiss a few frogs before finding her prince” comes from the fairy tale of a princess who kissed a frog to remove a curse and reveal her prince. The moral of the story is that there might be something beautiful in someone that isn’t immediately recognizable, until they are treated with kindness. It turns out, though, that kissing a frog might heal us more than the frog! Well, sort of…
Researchers at Emory have been studying frogs. Their findings show that, “Some frog mucus contains antimicrobial peptides, which are immune system molecules that can neutralize bacteria, viruses, and fungi.” So…frog mucus can be antibacterial. In fact, mucus from the skin of a frog in southern India kills the H1 flu!
I know…”ewww!”
Interestingly enough, anti-bacterial frog skin mucus isn’t a new idea. In ancient Russia, Russian Brown Frogs were dropped into milk to keep it from going sour. Apparently, the frogs secreted peptides that were antibacterial. Again, “ewww,” but interesting.
You might be thinking, “I’d rather have the flu than kiss a frog.” You aren’t alone. Many people actually would choose a sickness rather than taking the prescribed medicine, no matter how simple the solution is.
Spit is kind of gross too. Truthfully, I can’t imagine being happy about someone spitting in my eyes. But that is exactly what it took for a blind man to see!
In Mark 8:23, Jesus spits on a blind man’s eyes and healed him. In John 9:6, Jesus heals a blind man by spitting on the dirt and rubbing the mud in the eyes of the blind man. In Mark 7:33, Jesus put His fingers in a man’s ears, spit on his finger, and put his finger on the man’s tongue to heal him.
These practices seem strange today, and a little gross. But would you refuse treatment just because you don’t understand it? Many people do. Some refuse baptism, being washed clean by the blood of the lamb, because it seems strange.
As uncomfortable or strange as it may seem, we begin our walk in faith, by being immersed, baptized for the forgiveness of our sins. In doing so, we submit to His will. We show a willingness to be spiritually healed – as God designed it.
So, frog mucus? I’ll have to give it some thought. But don’t miss out on being healed by Christ just because the treatment doesn’t fit your preconceived notions of healing. Be baptized for the forgiveness of sin and enter into the body of Christ, the church, those who are being saved.
