Put On The Whole Armour Of God

Suddenly, it was there — a cone-shaped, white nest under the garden shed roof at the back of my property. A few wasps crawled near the round opening at the bottom. I had never seen one before and I felt a little intimidated. But, I thought, if they leave me alone, I’d leave them alone.

A few weeks later, I had just finished mowing the lawn when wasps swarmed me. They didn’t sting, but I was frightened. What would happen if my seven-year-old son accidentally disturbed the nest while playing in our backyard? These yellow jacket wasps can sting multiple times. If one is allergic to their venom, one could die. I decided they had to go.

I did some research before I attempted to destroy the nest. I laughed as I watched foolish people on You Tube throw rocks at, fire BB guns at, or try to burn wasp nests with blowtorches, and then run for their lives, chased by swarms of angry wasps. A professional extermination website warned that the job isn’t for amateurs, so I called one who gave me a quote of around $200. That was too expensive, I thought, so I decided to tackle the job myself. I did some more research and developed a battle plan.

That evening, I bought a large can of Raid, waited until just before sunset, put on my snowmobile suit (complete with helmet, gloves and rubber boots) and marched off holding the insecticide. The backyard was almost dark. There was no activity around the nest. The wasps, apparently, had retired for the night. I stopped about 12 feet from the nest, aimed at the opening, and pressed on the button on the top of the can. A stream of poison quickly shot into the nest hole. I let it penetrate the interior for a few seconds. Then I saturated the exterior with the rest of the can’s contents. My breathing had fogged the helmet’s visor, but I could still see well enough. A single wasp escaped the death trap through the bottom hole, drunkenly flew away from me, and then fell dead.

I went back into the house, washed, and went to bed. The next morning, I investigated. The nest had turned a dark grey, its hole crammed with dead bugs. My attack had been a complete success and was far easier than I had imagined. But, what if I hadn’t prepared so well? A friend of mine told me that once he had been stung multiple times by wasps and had to seek medical treatment.

To successfully face life’s dangers, challenges and battles, we must have courage, faith, wisdom and determination. We must be prepared. We must not act out of any evil motive and we must believe that “caution is the better part of valour.” Spiritual attacks are even greater dangers than physical attacks. Satan’s legions are everywhere, eager to destroy our souls. How can we prepare to defeat them?

“Stand firm then, with the belt of truth fastened around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness arrayed, and with your feet fitted with the readiness of the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pray in the Spirit at all times, with every kind of prayer and petition. To this end, stay alert with all perseverance in your prayers for all the saints” (Ephesians 6:14-18).