Approximately twelve and a half years ago, my husband and I purchased a home in
Gas City, Indiana. We moved in (along with our four daughters) and, to our
amazement, found we’d inherited thousands upon thousands of blackbirds. This
certainly was a new experience for us. Never, in my entire life, have I seen
such a mess as the blackbirds left! Months went by, then came warm weather and
they were as bad as ever.
One day, my brother parked his car in front of my house, for twenty minutes, and
thought he’d never get it clean! Cleaning my sidewalk would take every bit of
two hours and, the following morning, you couldn’t even see our sidewalk or
front yard. The stink was out of this world!
Being raised on a farm in Kentucky, I’d raised chickens in 4-H Club. But,
nothing compared to this! The rain seemed to bring out the entire aroma.
Besides, my eighteen month old daughter wanted to play in it. Ugh! As energetic
as she was, I had to keep her locked in the house.
As time passed, my nerves became very raw from this type of existence. Being
desperate, I asked the Lord if He’d help me find a way to rid myself of these
birds ... especially since I was using my home for Him. (You see, my husband and
I had moved to Gas City for the purpose of starting mission work. In fact, we
were already having services in our home.) So, believing the Lord would help me
find the answer, I began my search.
Asking neighbors if they could tell me how to get rid of the birds, every answer
they gave was either illegal or impossible. So, I called the Health Department,
thinking ‘if they saw the mess - they’d have to do something.’ However, they
never showed up. Then, a long time neighbor told me I might as well give up.
Those birds had been there eighteen years and no one had been able to get rid of
them. Having eight or nine trees didn’t help either.
Beginning to read the book, GO HOME AND TELL (by Bertha Smith, a Southern
Baptist missionary to China), I was amazed as she’d tell of numerous accounts
where the Lord had rid her of pests that were unbearable. She’d give scripture
references of the Lord’s promises, then claim them as her own, as she went to
her knees asking the Lord for deliverance. I must admit, I didn’t know what to
think. Searching the Bible, as Bertha had given references ... sure enough, the
promises were there. Oh, it touched my heart! I didn’t know the Lord did things
like that. Could I really just ask Him to take them?
Appealing to Him, I said, "Well, Lord, if you can do these things for Bertha
Smith, you can surely deliver me of these birds. Lord, I’ve done all I know to
do except cut the tress down and my husband won’t let me do that. (He thinks it
would greatly depreciate our property.) Lord, you gave me this house and I’m
using it for you. You know this isn’t a fit place for worship, in this
condition. So, Lord, just take them."
Praying for three nights, while getting angry at the birds ... I commanded them
to leave, in the ‘name of Jesus’. My neighbor, then having come for a visit,
noticed such quietness that she just knew something bad was wrong. Going outside
to see what it might be, we discovered the birds were gone!
Quiet for the next three days, on the fourth evening the birds came back. I went
to tell my neighbor to move her car, so she wouldn’t have to wash it. But, she
insisted, "You prayed." I responded, "I know. No one but the Lord could have
taken them, even for three days." Refusing to move her car, in about fifteen
minutes, the all birds flew away at once. It was a sight!
After this, I‘d sit on a neighbor’s porch, in the evenings, and observe the
birds as they’d flock to the trees, then flee. It was as though the trees were
wired with electricity. Before, neighbors always avoided walking down my
sidewalk. If they had no other option, they’d run past my house, and yet would,
in spite of everything, get sprinkled from the birds. But now, they’d stop and
ask, "By the way, what happened to those blackbirds?" I‘d chuckle, then share my
testimony of what the Lord had done. They would leave amazed.
Living there for ten years, I never had that problem again.
© by V. Oranell Cupp dalox@comteck.com
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