Ant Attack

One of my jobs at the YWAM base called Gleanings for the Hungry, at Dinuba, CA, is gardening.  At first it was enjoyable and satisfying to pull out tenacious weeds from the rock beds, where they wormed their way through the black garden fabric and between the rocks. I got my kneelers strapped to my knees and attacked the weeds one by one.
One day I encountered an ant nest. Ants came pouring out of one tiny tunnel and before I knew it, I was bit several times.  These tiny fire ants, are only about three mm long. But, boy, can they bite. Then the bites are itchy, even keeping me awake at night. I kept my arm out of the covers, as keeping my skin warm made the itch even worse.
People have offered me cortisone cream, but I like natural remedies.  I found vinegar and Tiger Balm effective for a short while, and even sprayed the area with a kind of acidic water, the by-product of an alkaline water machine, that is supposed to be good for insect bites, and the skin in general.
Once these bites healed, I tended to forget the dangers of gardening.  My gardening partner and I decided to thin out some Aloe Vera plants that were crowded together, and plant them in areas that had no plants.

  I knew better than to kneel down, and was leaning over to cut the thick sucker that connected the plants sideways.  Long-handled pruning shears did a great job, and the baby plant was severed. I went for another plant.
Oh no! Here come the ants.  Thousands of ants swarming everywhere! Jumping back with a yelp, I peel off my gloves, brushing ants off my arms.  Even my top layer comes off and gets a vigorous shake. I keep up the brushing and shaking for a while, and they keep coming. My partner feels sorry for me, so brings some ice, and tells me to take it easy.  I'm happy to have a window of time to finally write an up-to-the-moment blog.

The ant attack reminds me of what the King James version of Ephesians calls "the wiles of the devil".
Other versions use the words schemes, strategies, deceits, and everything the devil throws your way. The behaviour of the ants is cunning and tricky.  You don't expect anything so small to have such power. And to come up at you so sneakily, when you're not thinking about danger. A good reminder to be on the alert to resist the tricks of the enemy of my soul.  They are as subtle and fast moving as those little ants.

Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. Ephesians 6:11