The end of summer. The days become a little shorter and a little cooler. There is just a touch of fall in the breeze as the leaves gradually begin to turn on the deciduous trees. It is, in general, a beautiful time of year. A time when the late summer breeze calls for picnics by the water and hikes through the woods. Absolutely perfect.
Accept for one little thing: WASPS!
Though this may be a particularly bad year for the stinging insects, wasps are always more of a pest in the fall. I have heard that this is because their natural food sources are not as readily plentiful, and maybe there is some truth to that. But whatever the reason, they are everywhere. They are attracted to bright colors, smells, and, of course, food. Unfortunately, there can be no picnics by the river. The wasps move in before the food is laid out, and if you don’t watch it, you’ll have them swimming in your soda, and that extra “prick” to the potato salad wasn’t the fresh onion!
But perhaps what frustrates me the most about the stinging insects is that they seem to think my deck belongs to them, and them alone. Now, we have a large deck, and I honestly don’t mind sharing it with the winged creatures of the world. But I would also like to use it myself once in awhile, without having to worry about being swarmed and stung!
When I went out to hang laundry this morning, the wasps had already found the clothesline. Maybe it was the colorful laundry that attracted them, I don’t know, but they swarmed both me and the laundry. My dog came to my rescue. She tried to catch them in her mouth. The only reward for her valiant efforts, however, was she was stung in the leg. Poor thing!
As I as using the wet laundry to shoo the wasps away for a few moments, just long enough for me to hang the item on the line, it occurred to me that this is exactly what it is like for a Christian to walk in this world. We may not see them, but the demons that swarm us are as thick and as vicious as the wasps on my deck. They will not be deterred, for their only goal is to make us stumble. To make us fall. To make us look away from Jesus!
Our problem? We don’t see them. We don’t even really realize they are there, and when we are “stung,” it feels so commonplace that we may not even notice.
In order to stop those wasps on my deck, I need to try and locate their nest and get rid of it. Another possible solution would be to put up an insect netting — An open-air tent, if you will, with panels of mesh. But other than that, I have no ideas for protecting myself from the winged pests.
I do know the solution for the far more deadly demon problem, however, and the steps are as follows:
1. We need to recognize the enemy. We need to pray daily that God will open our eyes to the demons that swarm us, for it is the unknown enemy that is most certainly the deadliest.
2. We need realize that these demons truly have no power over us. They are nothing but swarming pests, and they can only “sting” us if we allow them to.
Unlike the wasps on my deck, I can simply plead the power of the blood of the Lamb over myself. I can stand up on the merit of Jesus’ Holy Name, and with authority, I can command these demons to leave me alone.
And they will. They have no choice. It’s like I suddenly go under a “demon netting!”
3. And finally, I need to ask God to help me locate their “nest” and with His help, get rid of it.
There are, for many of us, strongholds in our lives. These strongholds are like little “shelves,” and just like wasps will build their nests on any “shelf” available, the demons will cling to those strongholds. No more strongholds, no more demons.
And just what may these strongholds be?
Unforgiveness. Hurt. Pain. Bitterness. Poor self-esteem. And the list could go on.
Friends, in your battle against the “wasps” of the devil, I urge you to ask God to reveal to you where any strongholds might be. Then ask Him to help you get rid of them. Next, ask God to reveal to you when you are being tempted. Ask Him for help identifying the “wasps” of the enemy, so that when they “buzz” around your head, you can simply take victory in Jesus! You can step under your “demon netting.”
Hum. Sure wish this would work against the wasps on my deck. But fortunately for us, it does work against demons, and the “sting” of demons is far worse than that of a wasp!
In His love,
Lyn
Lyn Chaffart, Speech-Language Pathologist, mother of two, Author — “Aboard God’s Train — A Journey With God Through the Valley of Cancer”, Author and Moderator for The Nugget, a tri-weekly internet newsletter, and Scriptural Nuggets, a website devoted to Christian devotionals and inspirational poems, with Answers2Prayer Ministries. Follow Lyn on Twitter @lynchaffart.