Into the Woods with Curio: Summer Bugs

“God made the wild animals according to their kinds, …and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.”

Genesis 1:25

Summer is the season for bugs. They are all around Beacon – deerflies and horseflies down at the waterfront, ants around the buildings, spiders in the washrooms, and mosquitoes everywhere. What a nuisance! What good are they, anyways?

Annoying as some of these bugs are, they all serve a purpose. Many are food for animals, especially birds, such as the vireos and whip-poor-wills and thrushes that we see and hear around camp. Frogs, salamanders, snakes, fish and even other bugs also eat bugs as a big part of their diet.

Some of the bugs that are found around camp are quite amazing, as well. One example is the ichneumon wasp, (pronounced ‘ick-NEW-monn’). Also known as the ‘stump stabber’ it is up to 8.5 cm long, with the female having an ovipositor that same length again. The female is usually seen on tree trunks or stumps, where she’ll circle around as if looking for something she dropped. What she is actually doing is drumming on the bark with her antennae to locate a wood-boring grub inside the tree. Once she has somehow figured out if one is there and where it is she bores into the wood with her ovipositor, right down into the wood-boring grub. Then she lays an egg on the grub through her ovipositor. Once that egg hatches it then feeds on the grub.

Another amazing bug is the whirligig beetle. You’ve seen these down in the shallows at the waterfront, where they race about on the surface of the water in dizzy circles. Their eyes are actually split it two, allowing them to see up into the air and down into the water at the same time! They are predators, and fast enough to catch a water strider, which is another bug that uses the surface of the water as its home.

Some bugs are also colourful and beautiful. These include the butterflies, of course, as well as many moths, and some of the iridescent beetles. The dragonflies and damselflies also fall into this category. Anytime you are down at the waterfront there is usually one or more species of dragonfly or damselfly zipping around the waterweeds or perched on a bare branch. They range in size from the diminutive, strikingly coloured bluets to the large ‘dragonhunter’, so called because it sometimes chases and eats other dragonflies. A bonus is that dragonflies and damselflies eat mosquitoes and other pesky bugs, as well.

While bugs can be a nuisance and even a concern, they are also amazing examples of God’s Creation. Bugs are also one of the animals found at camp that are easy to watch, and enjoy, all summer long.

Monk's Musings: Jesus the Way, the Truth and the Life!

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really know me, you will know my Father as well…”

JOHN 14:6-7

The banner over the entrance to our Lighthouse auditorium reminds us of the purpose of Beacon Bible Camp: to share the words of Jesus, the one who claimed to be “the Way, the Truth and the Life”. Those are pretty exclusive assertions! He claims to be the Son of God, the only one who opened the way for sinful humans, like me and like you, to be reconciled to God as our Eternal Father.

However, we must share these words with respect and humility! Jesus called many, but forced none to follow him. He dialogued humbly with women and men, powerful and outcasts, lepers and leaders, religious and pagans alike. He asked lots of tough questions. That is something we should also wish to emulate: encouraging all to “really know” Jesus, and by doing so to come to know God as Father as well.

We live in an increasingly polarized society. Paradoxically, one for whom the highest value is fast becoming that of “tolerance”. But the definition of “tolerance” is gradually changing into “intolerance” towards any truth claims or dissenting convictions which might clash with the secular humanistic worldview. Instead of a respectful dialogue between parties who have honest differences, we may feel coerced into a silence that acquiesces to the popular and politically correct opinions of the day. If this is our case, Jesus encourages us to brave and tactful at the same time!

We hope Beacon will be a part of your summer; but most of all, we hope the words of the Lord Jesus will be a part of your experience: that you may walk in His Way, that you may build your life on His Truth, and you may enjoy the Life that He came to offer us – a full life on earth, and eternal life with Him forever.

And we also hope that you will join with us in this delicate attempt to present the Truths of God’s Word clearly but respectfully; avoiding watering down God’s Truth, but sharing it with love and compassion and with sacrificial service that seeks to love our neighbour as ourselves.

With all our best wishes for this exciting summer,

Andrew “Monk” & Marianne “Tia” Nunn