The Bug Invasion After years of not having a garden, I have rediscovered that whether small or large, having one is very time consuming and requires a whole lot of work, especially new ones. I have to say that this year’s garden has been like no other I have ever worked in. One day as I was weeding the ground, I saw a plant that was beautiful, green, and healthy, but the very next day its color had faded and something had eaten small holes in the leaves so progressively that it had almost killed it. When I got down close enough to where I could see, I saw tiny black bugs all over it eating away at its leaves. I purchased some plant herbicide and doctored it and once again it began to flourish. The thought of this plant stayed on my mind and I asked the Lord what it was that He was trying to show me. He said there are times in our lives when it seems like life is so good, when everything seems to be going good for us and we are enjoying our mountain top experience. As we go about our day, we get caught up in doing things and in performing our daily routines and more and more we neglect to take time out to strengthen ourselves in the Word and in prayer. As time goes on we become spiritually complacent and we begin to accept the phrase, “What will be, will be” as fact. It never fails to happen after we take our eyes off of the Lord; the invasion of the bugs begins. We hear gossip about someone, doctor calls about an illness, our child is wronged at school, we receive notice that our job is being terminated and a notice for a big bill at the same time, we have a flat tire, our water line breaks, or any number of things that serve as a distraction to rob us of our peace. Just like the tiny black bugs on the plant leaves, problems begin to invade our thoughts with negative information that draws us into the trap of the stressful “woe is me” syndrome. If we allow these negative thoughts into our heart and entertain them, they will begin to weigh our spirits down and eat away at our peace and joy. As a Spirit filled Christian, when we are experiencing a battle of the mind, if we do not keep focused upon the Lord, we can open the door to the spirit of fear, hate, doubt, anger, and bitterness, which can take root and grow completely out of proportion. Small problems become big problems and small negative rumors become large life threatening rumors that begin to work negatively on our spirit and separate us from enjoying the life and presence of the Spirit of Almighty God. He warned us that if we didn’t take the time to build our faith and strengthen ourselves in Him, we would find ourselves all of a sudden being eaten up by spiritual bugs of every kind; some much bigger than what was on my little plant. We must learn to defend our spirit against being drawn away from Him by the little bugs. God is always faithful to get rid of the bugs if we turn to Him. I heard the Lord say to me that His children are like the plant, they get so busy doing other things they don’t take the time to pay attention to what the bugs are doing to their spirit. Because the bugs are so tiny at first and creep up upon them unexpected like, they do not see the danger until they have been overtaken by them. The invasion of negative influences can open up a floodgate to all kinds of “what if’s” of fear, doubt and unbelief. It is so easy for Christians who have lost sight upon their Savior, to get to the place where they begin to give up and accept the negative conditions as just another part of life, instead of standing in His power to overcome in them. If we find that our lives are being invaded by negative thoughts, we can call on Him and He is faithful to give us the strength to overcome the little bugs before they can become big and we can continue to walk in His Spirit of peace, joy and love. II Cor. 10:5 says, “Casting down imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.” We gird up the spirit of our minds with the Word of God. When we learn that we have the power of the Word of God within our hearts to guard ourselves against the bugs of life that try to come in and invade our minds, we will begin to walk in a peace that so far exceeds what we have experienced before, we will wonder why we took so long to start using it. We must take the time to become aware of our spiritual condition in order to recognize when there are negative forces trying to invade our thoughts. We must be able to know them for what they are so that we can protect ourselves against them. If we immediately begin to declare God’s Word and exalt His glory, they can have no lasting power over us. Victory is a promise to us in all situations, if we will keep our eyes, our thoughts and our hearts focused upon our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, our only true source of life. We must be diligent in studying the Word, seeking His face, and knocking on the door of His heart. He loves His children unconditionally. If we will give Him our all; all our love and devotion, He will not fail to show us His love everyday through His grace, His mercy and His blessings.
Posted on: Mon, 04 Nov 2013 15:23:32 +0000