Powderpost Beetles

 

Years ago, I had a friend who bought a house from a man at church.  It was an older house, but seemed to be in good condition.  My friend was up in the attic getting some stuff out when he found a tiny pile of sawdust on the attic floor.  He thought nothing of it, but was in the attic a few weeks later and found more piles of sawdust.  Upon closer examination, there were numerous piles of sawdust on top of the insulation all over the attic.  Above the sawdust were tiny holes in the roof rafters.  Consultation with an exterminator confirmed his suspicion: powder post beetles.  Those little pests had been working for some time on the inside of the 2X6 rafters, and the entire roof structure was compromised.  It cost him several thousand dollars in material and labor to get rid of the beetles!  Hey, do you have damage secretly going on in your heart?  Is sin doing damage to your soul?  Why not get rid of your sin and turn your life over to Jesus Christ?  Let clean up your life and make you whole.  Psalm 139:23&24,” Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”

Rain and Traffic

 

I was coming home from visiting my granddaughter in N. Myrtle Beach late Thursday night, and it had rained all day.  964 miles of rain, rain, rain.  But, the cops can’t shoot radar in the rain, so it was a good trip.  But that allowed me to drive a little faster than I should have … in rainy conditions.  It was dark, on the way home, and I was just passing I-285 on I-75 when the Google maps lady said, “Water on the road ahead.”  I saw brake lights, so I gently applied my brakes.  And at that moment, a car on my left went through a puddle, spun around, and pushed the car in front of him into the median concrete wall.  The car to my right locked his brakes and slid.  I continued pressing my brakes and went right between the mess.  As I slowed behind the traffic and continued home, I reflected.  I was grateful for good tires, for good brakes, and for the good Lord’s guiding hand … not in that order.  I know that these verses were written about Jesus as He confronted Satan, but they applied to me Thursday night: Luke 4:10&11, “For it is written, He shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee: And in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.”  Thank you, Lord, for watching over me each day, is my prayer.

Tiny Mouse

 

I was eight years old and watching TV when a commercial came on that was fascinating.  This guy had a little mouse that ran across his hands.  As he moved his hands the mouse ran from one to the other.  For only a dollar and two Schindler’s peanut butter labels, the mouse could be mine.  I begged my dad and mom to let me order the mouse, and they finally relented.  Schindler’s peanut butter was a little pricey, but my mother bought a jar.  I ate peanut butter every chance that I had.  She finally bought a second jar, and I had the two labels that I needed.  After several weeks, my mouse arrived.  But I was so disappointed.  The mouse was a fake.  It was a blob of wax the size of a dime with a tiny string stuck on it.  When you tied the thin string onto a shirt button near your waist and moved your hands just the right way, it looked like the mouse was moving from hand to hand.  I had been duped.  My parents probably knew the scam, but I just wouldn’t be satisfied until I had that little mouse.  My disappointment was a good lesson in life: if something seems too good to be true, it’s probably a trick.  Hey, how often are we tricked by Satan’s lies?  He lies to us and we fall into sin.  Solomon spoke of the lies of drinking in Proverbs 23:32, “At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder.”  Wine and alcohol may be relaxing, but it can also be dangerous.  Flirting women may be exciting, but affairs are deadly.  Our pride can lead us to places that we never intended to go.  Hey, wake up!  Think carefully.  Don’t be tricked by lies.  Lies about a little mouse … or lies about something much more sinister.  Trust in the Lord and not in your feelings.  Feelings may lie to you, but the Lord has nothing but your best interest at heart.  The good Lord will never let you down!