People are interesting. The National Parks Service recently issued a warning to refrain from licking the Sonoran Desert Toad. Apparently, some tourists have been licking the toxins emitted behind the toad’s eyes for its powerful psychedelic effects. The toad’s secretions reportedly cause euphoria and strong auditory hallucinations.

     I personally wonder if this practice is what led to the legend of talking frogs. You know, the fable about the frog that asks a princess to kiss him. Upon doing so, the princess is amazed as the frog transforms into a prince. I suppose one would require a seriously strung-out brain to believe that a frog can become a prince, let alone talk.

     Experts in the social sciences claim that it takes only seconds for us to size up someone else. People with mature faces are judged more severely than those who have baby faces. Yet first glances don’t give the entire picture of who a person truly is.

     As humans, we evaluate one another on appearance. God does not. God has x-ray vision that peers through our rough exterior and visualizes a gem in the making.

     As Christians, we are called to do nothing less. Author, Leon Brown, claims, “When you judge someone on their appearance or first words, you miss the opportunity to understand another human being.” Each of us is born in God’s image, which means that all of us have divine potential. Our great challenge is to see one another as God sees us: as we can be.

     So, the next time you cross paths with a frog, take a good, long look. You may discover something more than what meets the eye. Yet whatever you do, don’t kiss the toad behind the eye.