The Deviant Devil-Ant!
On a recent trip to pick mangos in Kununarra, I encountered what I started to call ‘devil ants’, though their correct name is actually the “Weaver Ant” (genus Oecophylla).
These little green ants, according to Wiki:
“ inflict painful bites and often spray formic acid directly at the bite wound resulting in intense discomfort.”
I don’t think this is quite accurate – the bites do sting but I would say they are only around a pain level of 2-3. As a frame of reference, the the bite from the big bull ants on our property would be a 5-6 (and the bull ant sting is a solid 9-10!).
They are more of an annoyance than real pain – so why the name ‘devil ants’?
So many things made me think of the devil while interacting with these ants, here’s a few…
They are there, though we often aren’t aware of them
It took me several times of being (literally) infested before I started to realise that theses ants were an actual problem that would keep cropping up. It wasn’t just a one-off, but this was going to be a continual problem. Every. Single. Day.
We are reminded in the Bible that we have an enemy of our souls – and that we should be on the look out, aware of his schemes. Temptations, lies and deception – all tools of the adversary – we should be aware!
Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are. 1 Peter 5:8-9 (NLT)
They look mean – even scary – but lack any real power.
Unless you handle insects or spiders regularly, most ants have an illusion of being scary. Crawling on 6 legs with very visible pincers that can bite, it would be easy to be scared of them, but there really isn’t any need.
The Bible talks about the devil, satan, as being ‘like a lion’. Far from being the king of the animal world and able to kill almost anything, the verse is actually talking about the appearance not the reality. The devil appears as a lion but actually has very little power.
We should not be scared of the devil, but operate knowing his real position – that of being defeated.
In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross. Colossians 2:15 (NLT)
They stop at nothing to scare you
These ants get very aggressive – standing up on their rear legs, shaking their ‘fists’ at you (literally), running at you with pincers open wide – they will even launch themselves off the leaves metres above to drop onto the attacking monster (me!). They crawl up your arms, on your neck, into your ears and eyes to find the softest part they can to get a good bite of.
The enemy uses similar tactics – trying to scare and intimidate – but ultimately the only attack they have is a deception. The attack comes at our weak points – the areas where we have learned that certain activities or sins can distract us from our pain and feed our sinful nature.
There are LOTS of them.
The colonies these ants form can be huge: consisting of over 100 nests, spanning numerous trees and containing over half a million workers!
As it is with satan – he is not a lone being that is everywhere and knows everything (like God), but there are many other beings of evil. Known as demons, fallen angels or deceiving spirits, these beings are everywhere. Agin, not to be feared, (remember Jesus has already won the war), but they are vast in number.
It can evoke fear when we focus on their numbers, though when we remember that they are under God’s authority and there are twice as many beings that are agents of God (angels) than there are evil, we can rest!
They are there when least expected.
It is possible to go through Mango trees for hours happily picking, then, when your mind couldn’t be further from the thought of ants, you get bombarded.
How many times are we going along in life, everything going well and it seems as though we get tripped up by the enemy? As always, the Bible describes clearly not only the process for everybody, but also the solution for Christians – be aware and resist him.
For non-Christians the answer is also clear, they need to become Christians first! (There is no victory over sin, death, hell or the devil for non believers – you must be under the forgiveness, identity, authority and victory of Jesus). Becoming a Christian is not just a mental decision to join or follow a religion – but it is a whole new life, produced by God’s Spirit. To find out more please contact us.
Their existence, form and structure is attractive
Regularly while picking, I would be mesmerised by these little critters – from the ‘party’ they seem to be having on a branch or fruit, to the way they act when you approach – it really is intriguing.
At times, that attraction can be bad. Watching them at close quarters would aways lead to at least a few gaining access to the ‘bite zone’. Or worse, a full blown onslaught from leaves above while distracted.
In the spiritual arena, I remember a time when God first opened my eyes to the truth of the Bible… I still thought satan and demons were just figurative at some level. But I had powerful experiences that awakened me to the literal truth contained in scripture regarding the spiritual. I started encountering many people and groups that were deeply spiritual – in the wrong way.
From ‘white’ witches to wizards to satanists to mormons to masons and more – I started getting intrigued – too intrigued. It led to unhealthy decisions. At one point I even purchased & started reading the witchcraft Bible! Wanting to know more in order to bring truth to them had actually led me too close and I had lost sight of something vital: Knowing and operating from the truth is what gives answers to and victory over the false.
Bank workers are trained to spot counterfeit notes easily, not by being shown clever fakes, but by spending time with the genuine article. Then, when a counterfeit note is received, they instantly can tell. Call it wisdom or discernment, but focus on the truth!
And remember that the Truth is a person – Jesus Christ – not ‘just’ a doctrine.
Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Philippians 4:8 (NLT)
Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, expose them. It is shameful even to talk about the things that ungodly people do in secret. But their evil intentions will be exposed when the light shines on them. Ephesians 5:11-13 (NLT)
I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. John 14:6-7 (NLT)
Weaver Ant nest on Mango Tree:
They search out and find our weakness
It is fun to watch these little ants try to bite through the tougher skin of the hands. Like a baby chewing on a rusk with no teeth, they gnaw down and put their whole body into it – but nothing really happens.
But then, they let go and run around your body looking for a better place to bite…
The top of the ear, an eye lid, an active mole, the back of the knees, the arm pit – these places the ant has far more impact. It hurts and eventually causes us to react.
As it is with the father of lies – he tempts us with things that he knows we struggle with. Whether is is food, movies, lust, money – the idea to turn to these things comes at key times. This thought is often planted by the enemy who knows we have learned to distract ourselves in particular ways from young. Far from being deep generational spiritual ‘curses’ they are often sins that we learn to love and use in place of the Father. They are areas we need to truly turn over to Him – true repentance – which is a heart change and a turning away.
No, a true Jew is one whose heart is right with God. And true circumcision is not merely obeying the letter of the law; rather, it is a change of heart produced by God’s Spirit. And a person with a changed heart seeks praise from God, not from people. Romans 2:29 (NLT)
Now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away. Then times of refreshment will come from the presence of the Lord, and he will again send you Jesus, your appointed Messiah. Acts 3:19-20 (NLT)
They don’t let go of their own accord.
Once an ant has latched on to a soft bit of the body – it bites down hard and does not let go. It keeps biting until you do something about it. But a quick flick or squish and it’s all over.
So it is with satan – he will keep nibbling, gnawing and biting at our weakness until we do something about it. Many times, the devil will give us a thought, a temptation to sin: our first response determines what course of action the whole episode will take.
The Bible says to resist the devil and he will flee: a firm “no” is all that is required, but if we enter dialogue like Eve did, the results are all too common. satan can not violate our will.
No means no. Mean it!
If you don’t mean it – realise that is an indicator that in this area you have not yet submitted to God. You are likely holding on to it due to unresolved issues. I want to encourage you to purpose to deal with these things as they can lead to your very death.
We often have reasons to ignore them
When you are determined to collect as many Mangoes as possible, the nuisance of trying to squish ants can seem like an unneeded distraction. Taking time to squish ants will mean less mangos at the end of the shift…less money for those who need it.
As it is with the wiles of the enemy. We often have other ‘more important’ things to do, we don’t want to ‘waste time’ addressing our adversary – besides he is defeated isn’t he?!
Ignoring them can result in pain
If you do ignore the attack of these little critters – you end up with hundreds of ants. Everywhere. The first one or two quickly get to the neck, then many follow.
The Bible warns us continually to be alert – to watch out for the attacks of the enemy. We don’t need to be worried or scared but we do need to know that they will come. And once they do, ignoring them will not help. The Bible gives clear indication of what to do…
Be aware that each time you give in, that sin you participate with deceives. It also deadens the conscience, making it easier to be led into that area again for more failure. Ignorance is no excuse, nor is it a solution. Deal with it – address the root!
The bulk are easy to spot if you are looking.
To start with, the first few times it happens, you are taken by surprise with the ants infesting your body & biting you. Then you start to notice the clumps of ants on certain mangos.
These are only a small part of the issue though. Over time, you learn to spot the main nests which are not on the mangos, but in leaves that are tied together to form a nest.
These are often located away from the mangos, where you wouldn’t expect it. But once you know, you look for these too!
As it is with the temptations brought to us by satan – it often happens away from others, after main events, when tired or not thinking about our normal life. The Bible tells us to Be Aware and recognise how satan attacks. This also highlights the very real need for clear Biblical teaching and discipleship…learning from others what to expect and how to react.
The isolated attacks take sensitivity to detect
Even when you are aware of the main clumps of ants on Mangos and even keep an eye out for the nests inside leaf nests, there will always be the occasional isolated attacks. The single ant that was on a mango already picked – or the one that jumped off a leaf many meters above you – the result is the same…
If they get on your neck or body they cause another pause in work. One way I used to slow the attack and detect these ‘lone ants’: I rolled up my sleeves and put insect repellent (should we call it repel ANT?! 😂) on my arms. This way, I could feel the invading ants as they tried to get up my arm while navigating the repellent.
A sensitivity to the devil doesn’t mean we focus on him or his ways, but we focus on light, on truth – on Jesus – then we clearly see when things are not of Him. His light exposes darkness.
… let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Hebrews 12:1-2 (NLT)
The earlier you are aware of the attack, the easier it is to resist.
When you see 1000 ants on a mango, you have a choice. You can leave it alone or try to harvest anyway. My stubbornness, combined with the mental images of people dying in pain & needing Jesus, caused me on most occasions to go for it. (Determination, tenacity, stubbornness or stupidity was an assessment that came to mind regularly!)
When making a knowing decision to harvest a mango with hundreds of ants, I would approach the task differently to normal. First I would knock the mango and try to dislodge a number of the ants. Then I would get the mango in my hands as quickly as possible, afterwards knocking the picking stick a number of times. Most of the ants crawling up the picking stick would fall off.
When the mango was in my hands I would squish the ants quickly and thoroughly until all dead. Then, after placing the mango in the crate, I would get any ants that had made their way up my arms etc.
This would take a lot longer than normal, though still only 10-20 seconds all up.
As it is in the spiritual area, if we are aware of the attacks that will come and the methods to use to combat them, we can ‘still be standing firm’. Many scriptures address the way to be prepared: it is not the ‘super spiritual’ rebuking and renouncing that I believe has come from a lack of knowledge of God’s Word.
Our authority and position comes from our identity in Christ.
The strength of our relationship with Christ and our faith in Him is the determining factor, not our own determination or strength of mind. From this relationship (planned, started, paid for and maintained by Christ), we will want to honour Him. We will want to be obedient, we will want to be pure for Him, we will want to resist the devil.
No one in a time of loving embrace with their wife wants to commit adultery. If we put our own relationship with God above everything – even our service to Him – we will experience true growth. Out of this will flow the correct responses to the issues of life and temptations of the devil!
They have a secondary burn.
After the ant has bitten deep, it starts to spray acid into the wound. It burns a little but looks (and sounds) worse than it feels.
This is a common experience with the Christian – the tempter tempts us with sin, we do the wrong thing, then he turns on us and says ‘why did you do that, look how bad, evil and sinful you are’. He accuses us and tells us how we let ourselves and God down. A lot of what we hear convinces us that God would not want us now.
The reality is that God loves us, that nothing can seperate us from His love, that we have complete access to His throne of grace, that God loves to forgive, that His love has nothing to do with our actions. God loves, satan lies!
The importance of having the truth of the Word of God deep in our hearts (not just our minds) is imperative. Again, the deceit of the enemy only take hold when we are harbouring lies in that area. And be sure to remember, repeated falls in one area expose the need for urgent attention.
So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. Romans 8:1 (NLT)
But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous. He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world. 1 John 2:1-2 (NLT)
And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39 (NLT)
There is unexpected consequences that affect us.
There is an unexpected consequences to ant attack: sap burn.
The mango tree sap starts to burn when it is on the skin, even if you are not allergic to it. The more you squish the ants on the back of your neck, the more the sap burn adds to any sunburn you likely have in the same place. Ahh the joys!
This leads to a very real temptation to either avoid the mangos with ants or avoid their squishing – both options having consequences.
In the spiritual (and emotional) area, we often allow the secondary consequences of past experiences to affect us, at times for life. So many people have hidden fears, phobias and habitual sins that interrupt, direct and at times control their lives it is amazing (and sad).
Again there is many answers in scripture to these things – but letting them direct or control us will mean that we never achieve the potential or calling that God has for us. So many times we won’t even entertain an idea or option due to underlying fear.
Address these things – don’t ignore them! One way that we have seen God use regularly to overcome these things properly is Transformational Prayer Ministry. Read more about that here.
The temptation to see how close we can get always ends in pain.
So many times wanted to see how close I could get…what a mistake! This would always end in me getting at least a few (and often times far too many!) ants attacking.
So it is with us and sin. We often want to see how close we can get… The intrigue and inner, hidden desire to sin, deceives us into thinking it is a good idea to get as close to the ‘edge of the cliff’ as possible. We are then left wondering why we fell. Again!
Instead, the Bible directs us to…RUN! We say in our house “TWO TWO TWO TWO” – a reference to a verse that addresses this directly:
Run from anything that stimulates youthful lusts. Instead, pursue righteous living, faithfulness, love, and peace. Enjoy the companionship of those who call on the Lord with pure hearts. 2 Timothy 2:22 (NLT)
The start of a nest – the ants pulling 2 leaves together and holding them while others spin the web as ‘cement’ 
Resisting them is possible, necessary and easy
Each ant is small and relatively harmless. A simple flick or squish and they are gone.
A firm, heart resolve of “NO” is all it takes to resist the devil. We don’t need to argue, stamp our feet or be some spiritual guru – Jesus has given Christians authority over our defeated foe.
If we are serious, he has to flee. But beware, often we have a hidden area of our hearts that actually desires ‘yes’. An insincere ‘no’ will do little as it is our will that gives resolve.
So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. Let there be tears for what you have done. Let there be sorrow and deep grief. Let there be sadness instead of laughter, and gloom instead of joy. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honour. James 4:7-10 (NLT)
Half hearted attempts make it worse.
So many times I would hit my neck with my hand to squish an ant that I could feel crawling around. But, as I was trying to keep my attention and speed on picking, sometimes the hit was not accurate or complete. My attention was not focussed. The ant would get hit, but would not be killed.
The result? It would bite and bite hard. Even if half dead, unable to move, it would use the last of it’s energy to bite and keep biting the same place.
An insincere ‘no’ to the enemy is not the Biblical mandate to resist, so the enemy doesn’t flee. Why should he if he knows our resolve is not strong? This normally leads to us entering into a dialogue, debate or some form of denominational ‘battle’ that again ends in us being tripped up.
A clear, determined resisting is all it takes. Remember the root of the word ‘decide’ is to die. To kill the option. Kill the option of saying yes – Squish that ant! If you find yourself entertaining the temptations of the devil – look at why and seek help. These hidden things will affect your spiritual life incessantly.
Good can come from it
As I write this I feel the back of my neck where an active mole had gotten very sore from sun burn and sap burn burn in the first week of picking. It had gotten so bad, I had thought I would have to get it cut out when returning to Perth. It’s amazing how many times the ants got to this mole and bit it. Owwww!
I noticed over time that second week, as the ant attacks were continual, that the pain from that mole got less and less. Today I can not even find where it is (or was) located.
Maybe the squished ants formed part of a protective layer to the sun? Move over hippo! (Hippos make their own sunscreen). Maybe the ants or the acid from their bites or the sap actually helped the mole? Who knows – but yet again, God has caused good from what seems bad!
And, if nothing else, this whole article came from these little critters. Maybe that’s good, maybe not – you be the judge 🙂
And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory. Romans 8:28-30 (NLT)
Conclusion: the devil is defeated, know, love & follow the victor, Jesus Christ!
Lord, may we understand fully Your victory, Your love and our position with and in You. May we not get distracted or fearful of the attacks that exist because of who we are in You. May the victory that you accomplished for us be something that causes freedom and joy to worship you and be used for Your kingdoms expansion.
The end result – Yum!
