Life In My Father's World: Angels and Dragonflies

Dragonfly

Summer here in the south, is full of heat, humidity and critters. In our backyard, two mature Sugar Maple trees offer us a wonderful “cave” of shade and we placed our favorite outdoor chairs accordingly. We take advantage of it as often as possible, especially if there is any breeze available to help us tolerate the muggies so we can be outside for all the action. We lead a fairly boring life by all accounts, and insect entertainment is our cheap thrill. Frogs and birds provide the background music, God provides the scenery, and we sit, watch and listen.

Late in the day, when the sun is low in the sky, things unseen when the sunlight is overhead are revealed by this low angled sunlight. Beautiful sparkles of glistening swirling critters appear. Some are in congregations, some are flying solo, but they are more than abundant, they are like a tiny invading army! That’s when the resident dragonflies begin to dance. Have you seen it? They perform acrobatics the Ringling Brothers would envy, sometimes like a pendulum, sometimes like a dancer. They are quite talented, flying upward, downward, forward, backward and side to side, at a cruising speed of about 10 miles per hour and have been recorded at as much as 34 mph. Their acrobatics are very entertaining, but they are certainly not performing for my benefit. They are catching and eating the little flying critters. Yum! (That "yum" was for my dragonfly audience, if you are not a dragonfly, I apologize for the suggestion.) Today a quite handsome one was perched on a twig of a fig tree with a little green bug in its mouth. It must have been delicious. He chewed every last bit, and wiped his mouth clean to start all over. Maybe they taste like popcorn…um, never mind, back to the story. The swarms of insects that are mostly invisible during the day, are visible to the dragonflies, and to us when the sun is just right.

It is much the same for us. There are spiritual battles taking place that are quite invisible to us, but are ongoing nonetheless. Remember Elisha? He was a servant of God, a prophet. When a king amassed horses and chariots to overtake him, Elisha was unafraid, but his servant saw the army encompassing them, became afraid. He asked Elisha “How shall we do? ¹⁶ And he answered, Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them. ¹⁷ And Elisha prayed, and said, LORD, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha. ¹⁸ And when they came down to him, Elisha prayed unto the LORD, and said, Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness. And he smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha” 2 Samuel 6:15-18. The servant could not see the provision of God, but it was still there – not ordinary chariots, but chariots of fire! Another prophet, Daniel, prayed but did not get an immediate response. When the angel did arrive to respond to his prayer, he told Daniel the reason for the delay. He and another angel, Michael, were in a battle. He came as soon as he could.

There is an ongoing battle all around us, and even on the days it seems like the bugs are overwhelming, and that we are far outnumbered and doomed to fail, take heart. The dragonflies are on duty and they far outnumber the enemy. “Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world” 1 John 4:4. You also have armour to withstand the enemy, use it. “¹¹ Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. ¹² For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. ¹³ Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand” Eph 6:11-13. Stand today, fully armoured, and assured that the battle isn’t over but, it’s outcome has already been decided. Remember that the dragonflies and angels are at work.

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