Have you ever had a problem with yellow-jacket wasps at your house?

At our first house we had ground bees one summer… but never bees or wasps IN our house.

 

BUT... Things WILL turn a round. Devotional meditation from AnExtraordinaryDay.net

 

For the past few months, we’ve been living in an apartment.  It’s in a nice wooded area and we see turkeys and deer across the road regularly. That’s how I like to enjoy wildlife… with a little distance between us.

So, when I got stung on my foot in my apartment a few months ago, I immediately let the owners know, and informed them that there was a nest in the back outside wall.  We later discovered that there was another one at the corner of our deck in the front.  These nice people were pretty casual about it and took their time.  Maybe they didn’t realize how much it hurts to get stung by a yellow jacket.  Maybe they didn’t realize that yellow jackets don’t often sting just once like bees… they can sting several times… and they do.  I know from personal experience.

 

When you're feeling done... remember... things will turn around - AnExtraordinaryDay.net

 

This summer I have been stung on 5 different occasions.  Four different times on the foot…  another time on my neck while I was brushing my teeth… and several of these were multiple stings.  Maybe they don’t realize that it can hurt for days or that my foot swells up and that it itches so much I can’t sleep… on top of not sleeping right after the sting because of the throbbing pain.  But the owner did say she was relieved I didn’t have to go to emergency.

About a month after the first sting, the exterminator finally came.  In fact, he’s been here twice.

Since his appearance, I’ve been stung 4 times inside my apartment.  Tim has been stung once.

 

A woolly bear caterpillar - A devotional from AnExtraordinaryDay to encourage you through the tough times

 

Here’s the crazy thing.  Three times I have been in bed, tucked in, under the covers, asleep, when I moved my foot and got stung.  Since when do yellow jackets crawl into someone’s bed between the sheets? Have you ever heard of it?  Me neither.

Of course, the owners were informed.  Again.  They gave us the number and asked us to call the exterminator and speak directly with the firm.  We did.  And get this… the exterminator wouldn’t come out because we didn’t know the exact spot where the yellow jackets were entering our apartment.  Seriously?  They just appear… out of nowhere.  And I certainly am not looking for them in the middle of the night.

 

Unusual black bug crawling on an oak leaf - A devotional meditation for hard days - AnExtraordinaryDay.net

 

Fortunately, Tim figured out where the majority have come in… the trap door to the attic.  And he sealed it off.  But… we still have seen one or two a day since.  And we still haven’t seen the exterminator.

I am a little bit paranoid… I think you can understand why.

This saga has been going on now for nearly three months.  I’m done.  Totally done and I’m still recovering from this last sting which was several days ago.

 

That same feeling of being totally done has seeped into other areas of my life.

Or maybe all those disappointments and irritations that I have no control over have found their culmination in these unexpected and incredibly painful yellow jacket stings.

Maybe.

As I was reading scripture I was looking for a totally different verse and happened on this one….

 

Scripture verse to encourage your heart from Proverbs 13 - Unrelenting disappointment leaves you heartsick, but a sudden good break can turn life around - the spring board for a light devotional from AnExtraordinaryDay.net

Unrelenting disappointment leaves you heartsick,
but a sudden good break can turn life around.

Proverbs 13:12

It’s just a proverb, but it IS a proverb from the Bible, and that means it’s a nugget of truth for us to chew on.

I didn’t need to chew on this proverb.  I KNOW unrelenting disappointment.

Being heartsick.  It’s not just our spirits.  Disappointment can be so great that our beating hearts can be hurt and sick.  I know.

But.

The proverb has a “but.”

The “but” is a word of hope.

This word of hope helps us to not dwell on the heartache and disappointment.  It reminds us of future grace. Grace that has already been given to us… grace we have yet to see played out in our lives.

This “but” helps me to hang on.

but a sudden good break can turn life around.

It helps me realize that that good break I’m waiting for… it IS ahead.

And when it comes… things WILL turn around.

Even when the yellow jackets keep coming... things WILL turn around - AnExtraordinaryDay.net

So as I search the sheets before climbing into bed…

As I pray and trust God to open the doors for Tim in one of two potential opportunities…

As I choose to be grateful regardless of my circumstances and choose joy…

I really can look forward to a sudden good break and a turn around in our lives.

And you can too.

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For those days when you need to be reminded... Things WILL turn around. An uplifting devotional from AnExtraordinaryDay.net

 

Fallen... tiny crabapples - JoyDay! at AnExtraordinaryDay.net

 

It’s JoyDay!

 

And time to get our joy meters soaring!

Please join me in thinking back over the past week and counting seven things for which you are thankful.  This simple exercise of counting and giving thanks together in this space is something we do each week to reset our compasses and put our eyes back on the Lord.

I’ll start…

Thank you, God…

  1. that Tim was able to figure out where some of the bees were coming in the house… trusting YOU to stop the craziness.
  2. that You want us to run to you for every single thing.  Help us to not think twice to do it.
  3. Your provisions.
  4. for being able to get to the beach on time to see you paint the sky with another fabulous sunset.
  5. for an appointment for a phone interview.  It’s all in your hands, Lord.
  6. for helping us as we struggle with so many disappointments.
  7. that YOU are in control of this crazy world, the election process, the weather, and every. single. thing… big and small.

Now…it’s YOUR turn!

List your ‘seven’ in the ‘share your extraordinary thoughts’ section below.  You’ll be glad you did.

Thank you for stopping by and leaving your sweet thoughts.

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Comments

  1. Debbi Saunders says

    Thank You Dear God…
    1. that you came into and resolved a situation with a student beautifully!
    2. for your hedge of protection around the stated of Florida from the hurricane!!!
    3. that you pushed Matthew enough to the East that prevented it from being Catastrophic!!!
    4. that my roof was spared, we never lost power and the dead tree did not topple onto my neighbors shed!!
    5. that you showed me when we lost cable/internet at midnight,and I could no longer hear or see storm updates, that You were control and I had to “blindly”trust in your protection and provision….
    6.for the glorious weather on Saturday and the strength and energy for the cleanup and putting everything back in place that had to be removed and secured for over 8 hours!!!
    7.for the most spectacular day of res and,relaxation!!! today was PERFECT!!! a wonderful Blessing after the anxious days of uncertainty before the storm! ” This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it”….. and I did!!!

    This song came to mind during the storm….. I will praise you in the Storm…

  2. Sharon Clements says

    Put wet tobacco on a wasp sting and keep it on their with some sort of wrap or a bandage. Keep this on the site of the sting overnight, and it will be completely well in the morning.

  3. I’m so sorry, Diane. I’ve had wasp stings that seem to jangle every nerve in my body. I use an aloe and lidocaine product that you can find with sun products.
    I’ve been praying for things to turn around for you. Soon, Lord, please.

    • My dear sweet friend… your words are a balm to my soul. Thank you for your love and understanding. You are a blessing. {{hugs}}

  4. thank you lord:
    1. i got to talk with my daughter
    2: ive ate everyday this week
    3. ive had a roof over my head everyday this week
    4. i little relief from anxiety over a prediction my aunt told me about when i was a little kid about yellow jackets on this website
    5. weather has been the bomb
    6. ive been sober today
    7, ive got good health

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