Bed Bugs?? Oh No!!
In December we had a weekend worth of meetings. David decided rather than to uproot my parents (who live in our RV when we are home and live in our home when we are traveling in our RV) who had just settled into our RV – while their new home is under construction – we would just travel to our point of destination and get a hotel room for the night.
We were all anticipating the change of pace and packed our van and luggage trailer and headed out for 2 different meetings we had in Kentucky. I went into the weekend TOTALLY exhausted from getting ready for the trip. So, when we got to the hotel, we quickly settled all 14 of our beds and spread our things out so that we were organized to be able to quickly get ready for church the next morning.
My husband then headed to the church with my boys and our friend Ben (who had his own room) to get all our instruments and sound system set up while the girls and I took a stroll to a nearby Cracker Barrel to Christmas shop in their gift shop. We finished and headed back to our room. We took baths and all got cozy in our pajamas.
My husband called and told us he was on his way back with pizza. YMM! We all ate, cleaned up the mess, and got cozied in for the night. Once every last person was tucked in and nearly asleep, I finally made a trip to the bathroom, took a sip of water and with GREAT anticipation, pulled back the hotel bed spread and clean white sheets. The hotel was nice and upon arriving we had noticed the CLEAN smell!
However, when I pulled back those sheets, I glanced down and there, to my GREAT dismay, was a bug crawling!!!!! My heart began RACING and I immediately FLEW out of the bed! I had no idea what bed bugs looked like because (praise the Lord) we had never had them before. So, I ran and got a tissue and promptly squished that ugly thing!!
Then, I got my phone and did a quick search as to what bed bugs looked like. The bug fit the description perfectly…….with even a reddish hue to its body – indicating it has just had a nice meal of human blood!! YIKES!! PANIC!! NERVOUS BREAKDOWN POINT!!
I had heard HORRIBLE things about bed bugs and how difficult they are to get rid of once infestation occurs. My sleep deprived, aching, weary body hardly knew how to process my fears and disgust!
SO, I picked up the hotel phone and called the front desk.
“Front desk. How can I help you?”
“Hi, yes,” I responded, “I am calling to tell you that I just found a BUG in my bed!!”
Pause…..”I’ll be right there”, she responded.
The sound of my voice calling on the phone, awoke my husband and he FLEW out of his bed. “WHAT?!!” he exclaimed. He then studied the dead bug that now several of us were intently staring at lying dead on the crisp white sheets.
We continued to try to keep the small children sleeping so that they could be as rested as possible in the morning. However, the thought of tiny, blood sucking bugs crawling all over my babies was a skin-crawling, MORBID thought. My hands kept flying up to my head as I would itch and fling my hair in disarray and panic!
We then proceeded to pull down the sheets ALL the way to the bottom of the bed. We then found another TINY (new) hatching of another bed bug!! We then also found a shedded skin of yet another bug.
That hotel lady seemed to take FOREVER to get to our room. Finally she came and I swiftly brought her into our room and I showed her the bug and told her that we had found 2 more signs of them. She looked and assured us that the infestation did not look that bad. She said that we should be fine by just switching rooms. But with me, I was NOT going to take any chances!!
I expressed my panic and state of exhaustion to her. She then expressed her apologies and assured us that she would assign us another 2 adjoining rooms and give us our money back for what we had already paid. RELIEF!! But……my work was just beginning.
EVERYTHING that I felt nervous about, ex.: our personal pillows, blankets, clothing, etc. went DIRECTLY into garbage bags that I asked the hotel for. We HAD to leave out our church clothes for the next day, but most of what we could spare went directly into those bags.
We began to wake up all the little ones and their tears of being tired and grumpy began! Their crying only further agitated my raw nerves, but it was at that point I had a decision to make. I could CHEERFULLY face this situation, or make an UGLY memory for my children to remember me by. I chose the first.
I told the children that EVERY item they carried to the NEW 2 rooms, they had to fervently PRAY over as they walked down the hall. Before going into the new rooms, Kaylee and I went there first and carefully inspected each bed! ALL CLEAR!
I TIGHTLY tied up each of the 3 HUGE garbage bags that we had and put them disgustingly into one of the bathtubs. FINALLY, everyone was settled back into their new beds and I felt ready to give “going to bed” another try.
I gingerly crawled into bed and after many “mental” itches, fell into a restless sleep. Just about 3 to 4 hours later, it was time to rise and shine for an entire day…..talking and smiling with people over and over that I had never met standing in my heeled, dress shoes.
My nerves were raw and little things seemed to irritate me. But, I tried SO hard to press on, even when I felt like a failure to my family. This whole escapade happened after 3 months of already GRUELING travels and my weary body just LONGED for the comforts of my clean, spacious home.
So, I pressed on, sang song after song after song while putting a smile on my bone-weary face and begged God inwardly for the strength to rise above my stinking flesh and have the beautiful aroma of Jesus about me!
I somehow managed to get through the day and our small children managed to follow instructions and keep their innocent mouths from blurting out the embarrassment of the previous night’s escapade.
We were FINALLY driving HOME and totally second guessing our supposed BRILLIANT plan to stay in a hotel. We were more thankful for our RV now and had learned a lesson NEVER to stay in a hotel room without checking the beds FIRST!!
On our way home, I called the bug control and asked for their advice on how to successfully approach the situation. We all traipsed into Wal*Mart at 12am (an hour still from home) and bought LOTS of bed bug spray. We then proceeded home and my work BEGAN!
No time for sleep and crashing into my comfortable bed at home!! There was preventative work to be done and I just did NOT want to chance bringing even ONE nasty creature into our home.
So, I gave CLEAR instructions to the family that not ONE thing was to be brought into the house until it had come by me first!!!! Everything was dumped into the garage and we all began to empty everything!! Load after load after load of laundry in HOT water kept being washed and dried. Suitcases were thoroughly sprayed by bug spray and every last thing was either sprayed or washed before being brought into our lovely home. (A few days later, our washer broke! – whoops! One TOO many BIG loads! – Ugh!) HOURS later, I finally felt ready to wobble up to bed.
When I laid my weary body in my clean bed, it never felt so cool, restful, and calming!! Every bone in my weary body said, “Aaaahhhh!!!”
We have never seen one sign up bed bugs (Praise the Lord) since getting back home and that was about 6 weeks ago. God was SO good to protect us!! THANK YOU, Jesus!!!
This whole analogy made me ask myself what God may be trying to teach me through this all and how I could share it with others. I then thought – MENTAL BED BUGS in mine and others lives!!!
You know? Those evil thoughts from Satan that say…….
-“You are a failure!
-Don’t witness and give the Gospel to that person, you may irritate them!
-You don’t measure up to so and so with either your looks, talent, or gifts.
– Why keep fighting for your marriage – just GIVE UP!!
-Why keep trying to raise up godly children- you fail all the time – JUST GIVE UP on constantly taking a stand on right and let your kids do whatever they want!!
-Why keep serving Jesus? The world’s way looks SO much more fun!
-Question God and WHY He allowed that in your life!! Don’t accept this as God’s will for you – BE BITTER!!
-That lady looked at you a little weird. She probably HATES you!
-Stop being so content and feel sorry for yourself! You certainly have the right to!!”
Etc., Etc., Etc.
Those little voices (from Satan and his demons and our old, wicked flesh) haunt us all the time!! They start to slowly sap from us (just like those old nasty bed bugs do our blood) our JOY!!
If we allow them to, they will begin to grow and multiply……just like bed bugs can so quickly do. They begin to itch and fester and grow until…….well, until there is SUCH an infestation, that it is now ALL we think about and our effectiveness for Christ is DESTROYED!!
Decide today to NIP IT IN THE BUD!! (Like Barney Fife – in the Andy Griffith Show used to say.) Take care of those feelings, doubts, fears, worries, and discontentment, among many other things!
Put them through the washing machine (prayer and Bible reading) and clean that out of your heart!! DO NOT alllow those thoughts and feelings to GROW in your life!
If you don’t…….well…….this is what you will see……..
-Broken homes
-Broken frienships
-Rebellious Children
-Lowered, sinful standards
-Shattered testimonies
-AND THE LIST GOES ON………..
Friend, I love you. I want to brighten the corner where God has planted me. I am SO far from perfect and if you could talk to God, well, He could SURELY give you a list a million miles long of how many times I have failed Him!!
However, I do pray that I can be a good advocate for Him and proclaim His truth in spite of my human tendencies.
I DO know this, God wants a RIGHTEOUS people. No, not stooped in self-righteous snob, but NOT afraid to proclaim TRUTH from God’s Word. Many times when we put SIN through the washing machine (or RULE BOOK – the BIBLE), it convicts people of the sin that they are (perhaps) living in and they deem you as self-righteous and judgemental. The truth is, is that their argument is with God – not you. However, it sounds much more convincing to their “itching” ears that YOU are the problem.
Keep in mind though, anything done without charity and the love of Christ, is done in the wrong spirit. But Christian, let’s get some back bone. Let us WASH OUT those bed bugs in our life!!
Let’s stop listening to those creepy, crawly voices of Satan and allowing it to rob our joy and convince us to “give in” because we don’t think that to wash it all out in our life is worth it – or we are just TOO TIRED to keep going against the current of the world’s trend and swim upstream!
Believe me, I KNOW that tired feel, both physically and spiritually, but to give up, is NEVER the answer!!
Let’s be proactive and GET RID OF THOSE BED BUGS IN OUR LIVES!!
I love you all!!
Fighting (With Love) For Truth,
Jill Rodrigues
I hope the Scriptures below confirm from God Himself what I have tried to get across today…….
1Pe 3:14 But and if ye suffer for righteousness’ sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled;
Ps 37:1 ¶ Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity.
2 For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb.
3 Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.
4 Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.
5 Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.
6 And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday.
7 ¶ Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.
8 Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.
9 For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the LORD, they shall inherit the earth.
10 For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be.
11 But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.
12 The wicked plotteth against the just, and gnasheth upon him with his teeth.
13 The Lord shall laugh at him: for he seeth that his day is coming.
14 The wicked have drawn out the sword, and have bent their bow, to cast down the poor and needy, and to slay such as be of upright conversation.
15 Their sword shall enter into their own heart, and their bows shall be broken.
16 A little that a righteous man hath is better than the riches of many wicked.
17 For the arms of the wicked shall be broken: but the LORD upholdeth the righteous.
18 The LORD knoweth the days of the upright: and their inheritance shall be for ever.
19 They shall not be ashamed in the evil time: and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.
20 But the wicked shall perish, and the enemies of the LORD shall be as the fat of lambs: they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume away.
21 ¶ The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again: but the righteous sheweth mercy, and giveth.
22 For such as be blessed of him shall inherit the earth; and they that be cursed of him shall be cut off.
23 The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way.
24 Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholdeth him with his hand.
25 I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.
26 He is ever merciful, and lendeth; and his seed is blessed.
27 Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell for evermore.
28 For the LORD loveth judgment, and forsaketh not his saints; they are preserved for ever: but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off.
29 The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein for ever.
30 The mouth of the righteous speaketh wisdom, and his tongue talketh of judgment.
31 The law of his God is in his heart; none of his steps shall slide.
32 The wicked watcheth the righteous, and seeketh to slay him.
33 The LORD will not leave him in his hand, nor condemn him when he is judged.
34 ¶ Wait on the LORD, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it.
35 I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a green bay tree.
36 Yet he passed away, and, lo, he was not: yea, I sought him, but he could not be found.
37 Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace.
38 But the transgressors shall be destroyed together: the end of the wicked shall be cut off.
39 But the salvation of the righteous is of the LORD: he is their strength in the time of trouble.
40 And the LORD shall help them, and deliver them: he shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them, because they trust in him.
(KJV)
We are SO pleased to announce that our SWEET Nurie will be graduating from High school this June. We have home schooled her from the start and she has been a JOY to raise and SO obedient and pleasant!!
God her WHOLE life long and to stay pure until she marries “Mr. Right”……. 
Also, Nurie looks forward to investing more time in her younger siblings and helping her Mama homeschool them.
🙁 Also, did you hear that the coffee shop – STARBUCKS – decided to put pictures of President Trump on their floors for people to “walk on” in disrespect?!! We are GRIEVED at the state of many wicked people in this nation. If you are reading this, we strongly encourage you to NOT give these places of business YOUR business. They openly support the gay movement. No wonder they don’t want Bibles on their shelves – it CLEARLY states in them that sodomy is WRONG!!
🙂 you did when kneeling before Him someday! It is a life of TRUE joy and peace.
<3 
