2 Lessons from a Mosquito

My husband, Chris, is a mosquito magnet. Instead of worrying about the citronella candles or bug spray, I can simply bring him along to an outdoor function and know he’ll be the poor guy itching in the morning. Unfortunately, it turns out my plan doesn’t hold up if a mosquito gets trapped overnight in our bedroom.This may be TMI, but I like to sleep with one foot outside the covers. Apparently, that one foot was all it took last night. I woke up itching before the sun rose. In my slumber, I scratched my foot and grabbed my phone to check the time. It was 4:30am. As I rolled over, I wondered if I was dreaming that I had bug bites. No such luck! By the time the sun came up, I’d discovered 25 bites on my ankle. Fortunately for Chris, he kept his feet under the sheets and I took one for the team.Maybe it’s because I teach and write, but I couldn’t help but see the analogy. How many times do we innocently and unintentionally expose ourselves and get bitten? If only I’d kept my foot under the protection of the sheet, my ankle wouldn’t look like it had chicken pox. I wouldn’t even have needed to bury them beneath an electric blanket or a down comforter; a simple sheet would’ve done the job.In the greater picture of life, we must understand that we’re offered God’s protection. How many times do we violate the very basic instructions of scripture to guard our tongue, honor our parents, or tell the truth? His Word is the sheet we are given. Sometimes we use the sheet. Other times, we carelessly toss it aside, unaware that it’s what’s keeping us from getting bitten.[bctt tweet="God offers us protection. Do you take Him up on it?"]To spare you from a second blog about a bug, I must tell you what happened after I realized the fierce attack that silently occurred in my bedroom. As I headed downstairs in the morning, I kept analyzing how the stupid mosquito got in the house in the first place. We had grilled the night before and I’m sure it had made its way inside on one of the many trips to check the food. I thought, “Great. How am I ever going to locate that mosquito and get rid of it before he goes for someone else?”By this time, I was standing at the kitchen sink, filling up our dog’s water bowl. You won’t believe what I saw. Yep… that sucker that was carrying around way too much of my blood. With one smack the mosquito had his lights knocked out. Of course, I hope he traveled solo. I’ll find out tonight.It did make me smile, though. The truth is that, in the same way that God’s gracious enough to offer us protection, He’s also good enough to lead us to the source of our pain and help us stamp it out. There’s nothing too big or too small for Him to handle.[bctt tweet="There’s never another day easier to obey than today."]Are you getting eaten alive right now? Where do you need to pull back and make sure you’re under God’s sweet protection? If you’re already suffering the effects of being exposed, what do you need to do to limit the damage and get back on track?I don’t know about you, but I’m putting my foot back under the covers. Don’t wait too long. There’s never another day easier to obey than today. You’ll never regret getting back under God’s protective care.