Recently, illegitimate aliens of the worst kind have invaded our house illegally.
It came to a head just the other day when we were sitting down to lunch, and The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage had a lovely bowl of tomato soup.
As I was eating my lunch, I glanced over at her bowl of tomato soup. The top of it was covered with little black dots of some sort. Looking at it, I asked her, “Oh, my dear, what kind of soup are you eating today?”
She looked down at her soup, and her world came to a crashing end. She jumped up and yelled, but I had no idea what was happening.
I noticed that those little black dots were swimming around in it. The tiniest little bugs I had ever seen, but there they were, swimming cheerfully in her soup.
Being the affectionate husband I am, I laughed uncontrollably as I pointed to her soup. “You do make the best soup in town.”
Whenever I saw a bug, I would look at The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage and say, “Do you want this one for your tomato soup?”
For some reason, I’m not sure why, she didn’t find any of that very funny.
But things were about to change.
Those bugs flew around my head, and one landed on my nose. Not thinking, which is my MO, I smacked that bug with my right hand as hard as possible. Of course, I did not consider that the bug was as small as it was, and it was on my nose. I’m unsure if I hurt the bug, but my nose began to bleed.
The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage caught me and said with a little smirk, “Are you having fun playing with your little bug friends?”
I wouldn’t say this out loud in her presence, but I deserved that.
Later that afternoon, the bugs were still flying all around. As I sat in my easy chair drinking coffee, I noticed bugs flying around my coffee.
I grabbed my coffee and shouted to those illegitimate aliens, “Touch my coffee and you die!”
The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage noticed that I was getting somewhat agitated by these bugs. No matter what we did in the house, they were still there.
Towards suppertime, The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage looked at me and said, “Why don’t we go out for supper tonight and celebrate a bug free zone?”
I know my wife is right all the time, and this time, she was more than right, so I was all in with her on this.
A little later, I thought of a bible verse along this line. James 3:5, “Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth!”
Sometimes I don’t realize how important such little things are. Looking back on my life, I remember some small events that turned into big events.
The biggest distractions in my life are the little things we sometimes ignore.
Sometimes just a few words can cause a big problem, which can last for a long time and cause a big problem. Say one wrong word and the problems begin.
No matter how big a fire is, it always starts with a small flame.
Rev. James L. Snyder
Ocala, Fla.
Dr. James L. Snyder lives in Ocala, Fla. where he lives with his wife. Call him at (352) 216-3025 or email jamessnyder2@att.net. His website is www.jamessnyderministries.com.