I. Hate. Wasps.

And I don't mean people of english descent.  Actually, they might be hornets, but either way, I hate the things.  Nothing in the world makes me want to curse, swear, and throw things more than these little stinkin' pests.

My   n e m e s i s . . . 

It's the time of year when it happens.  I get that.  Somehow they have been finding their way into the house.  I don't know where - I can see on the outside (near a soffit/eave/vinyl siding gap), but not on the inside.  So they must be coming in behind something (a cupboard, the stove, or...?).  We had the local pest control guy come and spray again (he guarantees through December), and it looks like this time he used some of the powder stuff too.  Except I think now they are trying to escape INTO the house.  I almost have nightmares about it.  I am hoping that the temperature starts to drop soon and kills them all off.  They are at a high activity right now, so I am not about to go tearing off siding and try to find wherever they are nesting.  And right now, I don't feel like we have the money to pay a pro (probably the local pest control guy again) to come do the investigating for us.  We just paid for a new roof, which looks awesome, but took a huge chunk out of the savings.

I hate them.

That's a strong word, I know, but it's the only way to express it.  I don't feel that way about much else in this world.  I am not allergic to them, but I know they sting, and make my heart race a little just thinking about them.

I can't imagine loving them.  The aggressive, stinging, nuisance of a pest.  But somehow, we are called to love our "enemies".  I am going to go out on a limb here and say that I don't think Christ was talking about wasps, but you can see the parrallel, right?

I am sure we all have times where we would rather just get rid of the nuisance, and never deal with it again.  Or at least cover it up and pretend they aren't there.  But have we really dealt with the root of the issue?  Not really.

Sometimes we have to buck up and dive into the "hornet's nest" - something that scares the life out of me.  I am not myself an extrovert, and don't like to put myself in situations where I have to confront someone (an enemy?) about something, much less try to love them.  One of my good friends is good at that, but it's really not him - it's him listening to what God is telling him to do, and knowing that when the time comes the words, the strength, and the love, will be there.  I can only pray that when the time comes, he will do the same for me.   I know I am not allergic to loving my enemies, but I know that they can hurt me, and it makes my heart race to think about confronting them.

So, for now, I will wait for the right time to tear into the wall (of my own psyche, and the wall of the house) and confront mine enemies.  God will give us the resources to make it happen, and put before us a task which is important to him.

But I will still hate the wasps.