I Was Humming Along When… Hello Hump Day readers. I’m sharing a favorite topic of mine—hummingbirds! Many of you know that I teach on hummingbirds and I do it up here at the campground as well. I love the fact that this “tiniest” bird in the world thinks they are so BIG. In their minds they can accomplish anything and, if you have ever seen any of these birds in action, especially during mating season, they are acrobats with power and precision. They have a purpose and they fulfill it daily. For instance, they need a lot of sugar to keep their metabolism going. The same with protein, so they gulp down any insect flying their way or are busy pollinating in flowers. If they don’t have this energy, they will die overnight because they go into torpor nightly and that sugar/protein mix wakes them up in the morning. So feed them please, 1 cup plain old white sugar dissolved in 4 cups water. You will have best friends for sure!

How about you and I? Have you ever been humming along in your life as a Christian, feeling good about your walk with God, when suddenly you were facing all kinds of temptations, attacks, trials, and difficulties? Where did this come from so quickly? What the heck is going on? Like the hummingbird you need to take up guard and figure it out. For us, I call it spiritual warfare.

Like the hummingbird we have to do something NOW! Instead of trying to find a comfortable foxhole to wait out the battle, let’s take the steps needed for believers to move forward and go on the offensive spiritually. Again, like our hummingbirds, take action. Don’t wait for someone else, this is your battle and you need to put on your armor. But wait, haven’t we learned that the ‘battle belongs to the Lord?’ Yes indeed, but it doesn’t mean we stay on the couch and do nothing. The Apostle Paul tells us to get ready for spiritual warfare by putting on the full armor of God. Why? In Ephesians 6:11, he answers our question: “Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil.”

We Christians could learn a lot from our tiny warrior hummingbirds. These fierce avians are not paralyzed with problems. Instead, they push forward using the gifts the Creator gave them to survive. Why, then, has fear paralyzed us—the people of faith who have God’s power 24/7? Why do we waste our time worrying about the devil’s next move? That’s a bad choice in warfare. Instead, we should let the devil worry about what our next moves will be when we take our commands from Jesus Christ! The Great Reformer, Martin Luther, dubbed the devil with a loud ugly shout “anfechtungen!”  Luther’s German translates: I challenge you and you will lose—I will nullify you. Pretty effective words indeed. Luther knew the devil had no hold over him because he belonged to the Almighty God.

Do we always win? Yes, we do even if it seems long and returns again. But understand this: in the Lord Jesus, we are shielded but it doesn’t stop the devil from trying again and again. He is predictable which, to me, says he may be crafty but not very smart. The incredible brain God gives us helps us to learn his predictability and prepare and prevail from his attacks.

Like the hummingbird, we prepare—we’re on our guard, and ready for battle, confident in knowing that the Lord battles for us and is our mighty warrior. The outcome will be renewal and the confidence in a God who never-ever abandons us no matter the situation.

When the hummingbird has filled their body with what they need, they find a crotch in a tree, quickly falling into a very deep sleep—no worries—their task is accomplished in the Creator’s work. In the morning when the sun shines on them and their once-gray-colored feathers are now shining with the vivid colors of the rainbow they take off for another day and do it all over again, trusting the Creator who created them. The Bible tells us “All creation trusts their Creator” and we are also created by God—in his image! So, when spiritual battles come our way, we do well to follow the advice of the hummingbird. They do not use worldly weapons, but the weapons God has given them. In the heat of the battle, make sure you use God’s mighty weapons and nothing else. God alone is all we need, AMEN!