Ants Go Marching

Ministry Update

The Lord is giving us a good meeting here in Mobile. It is the kind of meeting in which we are primarily here to encourage the pastor and the church. This morning, I was able to preach in a pastor’s fellowship where the Lord gave real liberty. There is a possibility that we may be back in this area to have a meeting later this year. I am looking forward to that. We praise the Lord for what He has done so far this meeting and we look forward to what He will do in the future.

Family Update

Well, we have been enjoying the beautiful weather here in AL, but I am ready to leave. Why? Let me explain it this way. From time to time, in our travels, we happen upon certain phenomena of nature that make us wish that we were elsewhere. For instance, it could be the cold, snowy weather of the Northern states, the chronic mosquitoes of Minnesota and Michigan, or as in this case, the hordes of tiny “sugar ants” that have invaded our trailer this week. We came home after eating dinner at a church member’s home on Monday, and Paul announced that we had visitors – ants. I was busy ironing clothes for the service, and so was not able to investigate what he called “hundreds of ants” that were now in the trailer. If the truth must be known, I thought he was “pastorally speaking,” and that there were some ants, but not “hundreds.”

After the service, when I was able to inspect the invading swarms, I came to realize that he had indeed been telling the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Much to my dismay, there was a steady stream of tiny insects pouring into MY HOUSE! Paul went out to spray around the trailer, but since we weren’t really sure where they were coming in, it was a less than easy task. As for the masses that were already in the trailer, they died a less than noble death in the vacuum sweeper. It really makes no difference how long I sweep, or how many I destroy – they just keep coming. The nasty little bugs have found the way to the pantry, and managed to get inside this morning while we were at the preacher’s fellowship. I suctioned up as many as I could, and sent Paul to buy ant traps. We have been reminded of the story “Leiningen Versus the Ants”, although, if Paul burns down the trailer to kill the ants, I will have somewhat to say to him.

Josiah put our faith to shame this morning as he prayed over his breakfast. After thanking God for his food, he prayed, “And please help the ants to all go back to the dirt so they won’t be in the trailer any more and bite us and crawl all over the carpet and eat our food.” His actual prayer was longer than this, but the rest of it only God could understand.

Last night was another unusual experience. After the service, I went back to the nursery to return one of the toys the children had carted out to the auditorium. As I passed the bathroom off the nursery, I heard the toilet running. Being the conscientious person that I am, I stepped into the dark bathroom to jiggle the handle. When my sandaled foot landed in a puddle of water, I let out a surprised yelp. I suppose stepping into a puddle unexpectedly is always a bit alarming, but my level of consternation rises when I step into a bathroom puddle, if you know what I mean. At my cry, Paul came running to see what was the matter, and quickly commandeered the situation by jumping into the bathtub and turning off the water valve underneath the toilet. Then he and the pastor took turns plunging - rather violently, I thought – while the pastor’s wife and I stood back and watched. Paul was still standing in the tub, and the pastor was standing in the puddle, which made for a very amusing sight. I wish I had thought to bring my camera! We mopped up about three inches of water, and called it a night. The pastor and his wife were so thankful that the problem had been found before the fellowship this morning, or else the whole nursery and classroom area would have been flooded. It was really pouring out of there, I’m here to tell you. Anyway, we are hoping for a less eventful night this evening, as far as the normal aspects of life.

The services have gotten better each day, and we are praying for a great time tonight. Please continue to pray for God’s blessing upon this meeting, and that we will see souls saved and lives changed for eternity. And pray that we can get rid of the ants!