Pest Control!

“But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you,” Matthew 5:44 NKJV

 I have yet to find any method of gardening that has proven to be pest free.

Over the years I have purchased enough insecticide to fill a storehouse. One kind of “bug killer” will not work on all the critters that plague my garden. I may think the ants have died only to realize weeks later they simply relocated a couple of feet. I have even prayed over my plants only to find the pests were still there.

I finally realized what God knew all the time. Some pests are actually necessary.

Some may be irritating, biting, destructive and frustrating but they too have a reason and a season.

Fire ants, common in Georgia, are notorious for their sting.  Still, my yard is not full of decaying wildlife. The ants for all their annoyance keep the carcass count to a minimum.

Reckless use of certain pesticides will kill not only those bugs that annoy but those that are helpful as well. The last thing I want is to kill all the ladybugs that help my garden grow!

As in the garden, so it is in our lives. Some people (pests) work our nerves and appear detrimental yet in God’s perfect plan they actually serve a purpose.

We pray for God to rid us of them when instead God is using our pests to make us grow!

David was just a simple shepherd boy until he killed Goliath. The most imposing enemy of Israel pulled a small boy out of obscurity. We too, should allow our enemies their proper place in our lives.

 View your pests not as a source of frustration, but as the friction that polishes you toward perfection.

Bless them.

Pray over them. God never asks us to do anything He has not given us grace enough to obey.  Bless your enemies because God’s Word tells us to. It doesn’t matter if it isn’t easy. Do it anyway!

Blessing our enemies promotes the spiritual growth we are incapable of producing without them. Sometimes our “pests” really are for our best.

Address your pests as God directs you.

Don’t allow your disdain, irritation and judgement to lead you to make hasty or poor decisions.

Only God can eliminate pests precisely without adversely impacting everyone else.

Trust Him to use your pests to bring out the best in you!