Persistent Mosquitos

Summer in North Carolina = heat, humidity, and mosquitos. We know the heat and humidity are coming, but how many times do those pesky mosquitoes catch us off guard? Think about relaxing in your backyard or going to the lake with family and friends. After a few hours outside, we are slapping ourselves to try to fend off a mosquito, or worse, scratching little red bumps! A lot of scientific research has concluded mosquitoes don’t like everyone and their attraction to you is based on the chemicals in your skin, blood type, carbon dioxide emission levels, etc. If you are the type of person who never gets bit by mosquitoes, please say a quick prayer to thank God for this blessing in your life (for those wondering, my blood to mosquitoes is like ice cream to humans). Even if you aren’t a mosquito magnet, we can all agree on this…mosquitoes are persistent!

In the Gospel of Luke (Chapter 18), Jesus tells his disciples a parable about a widow who kept coming to a judge asking for justice against someone who had wronged her. Initially, the judge refused to acknowledge her because he didn’t fear God (see my wisdom devotional for what this really means) and because he had a cold heart and didn’t care about helping people. However, the woman was persistent and continued to knag the judge about getting justice. The judge eventually grew tired of the woman nagging him and granted the woman her justice because he didn’t want to be bothered by her anymore. Jesus wanted his disciples to understand that “God will come one day to bring justice to his chosen ones who cry out to him day and night” (Luke 18:7).

Jesus poses a great question at the end of this parable: “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:8). God does not ignore us when we chase after Him, but are we persistent enough? I like to think that God wants us to seek Him with the same persistence that a mosquito seeks us with. A mosquito needs our blood to survive just like we need God to truly survive. Let’s ensure that Jesus returns to find millions of persistent Christians and mosquitoes!

-Jacob

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