To Bee Or Not To Bee – Thoughts From An Encounter With Bees

Posted on by

Over the weekend, I was doing some odds and ends around the house when I had an encounter with a nest of ground bees.

I had just put up some fall decorations on our front porch when I noticed some weeds in the landscape in front of the porch.  Naturally, I knelt down and start pulling weeds.  As I started to get a large hand full of weeds, I felt something sharp and almost thorny at my wrist.  At first, I kept going, but I quickly stopped when I realized that this pinching feeling wasn’t going away.  Suddenly, I realized that I was being stung by a bee and there were tons of other bees swarming around me.  I quickly dropped my handful of weeds and ran into the front yard trying to get away from the swarm of bees.  Remarkably, I was only stung once.

Two days later, my wrist still hurts and itches.

The bee sting got me thinking some key “Be” verses from the Bible that merit some extra reflection.

  • He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”  Psalm 46:10
  • Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come.  Mark 13:33
  • Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.  I Corinthians 16:13
  • Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.  I Peter 5:8-9
  • Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.  Ephesians 4:32
  • Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.  Romans 12:12

I’m sure this is just a start.  What other “Be” verses can you add to the list above?  When was the last time you were stung by a bee?

Related posts:

  1. Weeding Reminder
  2. Steps in Sharing Your Faith 1 of 6
  3. Lessons From My Front Lawn
  4. The Birds and The Bees – Talking to Your Kids About Sex
  5. Be Strong and Courageous
  • http://deuceology.wordpress.com Larry Carter

    I normally get into a next of yellow jackets at least once while mowing each year. Is that what you are calling a ground bee? Kind of looks like it from the picture. I got one this summer.

    • http://jonstolpe.com/ Jon Stolpe

      Yes, I guess it was a wasp. Whatever the case. It hurt, and it’s still a little swollen.

  • http://twitter.com/cupojoegirl Eileen Knowles

    I thought of this one. “Be very careful, then, how you live–not as unwise but as wise,” Eph 5:15

  • http://www.tnealtarver.wordpress.com TNeal

    “Instead, be filled with the Spirit” (Eph. 5:18). It’s been awhile since I’ve been stung by anything but I’ve had my share of stings (red wasp, yellow jacket, honey bee, scorpion, big-as-my-little-finger black wasp crawling around in my pants …) and thanks for bringing that memory back to mind. ;-)

    • http://jonstolpe.com/ Jon Stolpe

      No problem, Tom, and thanks for the verse.

  • http://tcavey.blogspot.com/ TCAvey

    “…be of one mind, live in peace. And the God
    of love and peace will be with you. …” 2 Cor 13:11 (part of verse)

  • Norman Stolpe

    I know I’m dating myself, but several years ago Victor Books published a series of commentaries on the New Testament Epistles by Waren Wiersbe that they called the “Be series.” Each title was “Be …” The one I most remember, perhaps because if actually worked the best and was first in the series was “Be Joyful” on Philippians.

    • http://jonstolpe.com/ Jon Stolpe

      Thanks, Dad. This looks like a great follow-up to this post, and I always liked the verse in Philippians.

  • http://www.brandongilliland.com/ Brandon Gilliland

    I haven’t been stung in awhile. I really like the “be” verses. really cool!

  • http://danblackonleadership.com/ Dan Black

    Even a bad situation can inspire a great blog post:) Great passages. My mind is drawing a blank so I can’t think of any other ones.