That’s the entrance to one of my beehives here in Colorado.  It’s gotten down to -9 degrees this year and they still survive.  It’s just so amazing to me that this colony of bees can survive such harsh bitter cold.

Notice that they made the entrance to their hive even smaller.  They take propolis (bee glue), and form a more perfect fitting entrance for their colony.  The original hole is too big.  It allows too much valuable heat to escape.  They constructed a smaller entrance.  It still allows them to venture outside on warmer days (50+ degrees).  But they seek refuge inside on the cold days.  The hive provides them with a warm place to stay.  Also it’s a place they can get nourishment……..honey!!!

How do they stay warm?  They form a big cluster of bees the size of a basketball and continuously vibrate their wings which gives off heat.  The bees on the outside of the cluster,(where it’s coldest), gradually work their way back into the middle of the cluster, (where it’s warmest….around 70 degrees).  It’s a continuous journey from outside, to inside, to outside, to inside the cluster with several meals of honey along the way.  The queen stays in the middle where it’s warm.  Get this…… this spring when it’s time to begin laying eggs, she’ll tell the ‘thermostat committee’ of bees that it needs to be 90 degrees.  The bees vibrate their wings and increase the heat for the queen and her eggs.  Amazing how all this comes about.  Now you’ll just have to trust me on it being 70 to 90 degrees inside that ball of live honeybees……….unless you want to stick your own hand in there!

Their beehive is not just a place to store honey.  It’s there refuge.  Their place of safety and comfort.  It’s home!

Be my rock of refuge,
    to which I can always go;
give the command to save me,
    for you are my rock and my fortress.  Psalm 71:3

I have a place that I can go in times of stress.  I go to my Lord and Saviour.  I call out to Him in prayer.  I sing praises to His name.  I search for a quiet place to BE with Him.  He gives me nourishment for my soul that’s as sweet as honey.  He also “warms” my soul as I travel in and through this “cold world”.

Maybe you’ve been on the outside too long and now it’s time to work your way back into the inside.  Back into the warmth of a continuous relationship with God.  This Christian journey is not a one time event.  It’s a continuous daily walk.  Jesus has provided us with a way to experience life to it’s fullest.  We live in this world, but spiritually we have Him to provide us with shelter, a place of rest and refuge,………. and spiritually………..HONEY!!!!

Lord, BEE with us as we travel in this world.  Help us in our everyday activities.  Provide us with opportunities to share your love.  Thank You for BEING my refuge and shelter.  Thank You for our blessings (honey).  Help me and all my friends reading this……… Help us to BEE what you’ve created us to BEE!    Amen!

See Ya!  Dan Ainsworth wilderness preacher

Free Bees for me. Now, free honey for you!!!  I’ve learned how to set a trap to catch bees that are swarming/(looking for a new home).  That’s a handful of bees right there.  I like the honeybee that did a close up photo bomb in the picture (lower left hand side).

Bees swarm as a way to reproduce and make more colonies.  Lots of troubles out there because the bees are declining because of pesticides, mites, beetles, and really no one knows what’s going on.  So they need all the help they can get.  I’ll help them.  I’ll provide them a brand new bee hive to live in.  In return, they can share a little of their honey for me and you.  DEAL!!

To catch a swarm of wild bees, you put an empty box in a tree usually and bait it with a few drops of lemongrass oil and some old honey comb from another hive..  The bees smell this lure from up to 2 miles away.  The scout bees come over and take a look.  Basically they check out the box, see that it resembles a Holiday Inn and notify the queen bee.  They somehow decide when to swarm, who stays and who goes.  The older queen leaves for the new hive.  Her daughter now takes over the old hive.

When the swarm takes up residence in my swarm trap, I then transfer them to a regular bee hive…….. and we are in the honey business.

So many parallels to these wonderfully made creatures (the bees) and how we should live as Christians.  It’s all about the queen ( and what she wants) in the bee world.  Shouldn’t it be all about God and His Will in our lives?  Hmmm……. could God be the Queen not King?…….just wondering.

I’ve developed a knack for catching these wild bees.  Caught 10 swarms so far this year.  If I were to buy a bee colony (just bees, no wooden hive) it would be around a hundred bucks for each group of bees.  Do the math!  If I catch them…….. it’s free!!!

2 Corinthians 9:6-8New International Version (NIV)⁶ Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. ⁷ Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. ⁸ And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

These honeybees have produced some wonderful honey.  I want to share.  Private message me on facebook (Dan Ainsworth) with your mailing address.  Or leave a comment with your mailing address here (I’ll not post them to the public).  I’ll send a pound of wildernesspreacher honey to all who have subscribed and ask for it.  No money, no shipping costs, its free.  I just need your mailing address.

My prayer is that we all set a trap (our lives) for the Holy Spirit to come into.  It’s free as well as freeing.  Amazing how so much activity (and honey) can come from this collection of tiny insects working together for the good of all.  Amazing to me how someone living the Christian way of life can experience so many blessings from a loving God.  We reap what we sow, so……. sow what will give Glory and Honor to our Heavenly Lord. Also, BEE what God has created you to BEE!  What’s that?  A wondrously made creature and child of the King (or Queen   )

Don’t forget,  this is my way of saying thanks.  If you are a subscriber then leave a comment with your name and mailing address and you’ve got some fresh honey on the way!

See Ya Dan Ainsworth wildernesspreacher,  part time bee keeper

removing bees from the wall

A Catholic Priest and two Baptist preachers walk into a room filled with bees.  Sounds like the beginning of a joke, huh?  No, it’s actually the beginning of an adventure I experienced here in Westcliffe, Colorado.  There were bees in the wall of one of the buildings at Horn Creek Christian Camp (where I volunteer in the summers).  They gave me the chance to remove the bee colony (estimated 30 – 40,000 bees) to a better location at my friends’ place.  The local priest had a lot of experience with bee removal.  The video (click below to watch) is a summary of the 4 hour time it took to cut out the bees and transfer them to their new home.

Bees are an amazing sight to watch.  The honey is an extra benefit.  Even here at Horn Creek (altitude of 9,000 feet) with cold winters, the bees not only manage to survive, but actually thrive in harsh mountain conditions. A single queen along with 40,000 worker bees all working together, each doing their part.  Some of the bees are nurse bees tending to the eggs laid by the queen.  Some are foraging bees, seeking nectar from flowers in the mountain valleys for their honey production.  A few of the older ornery bees have become guard bees. Their job is to protect and sting any intruders. (we met a few of these during the cutout )

How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!  Psalm 133:1 NIV

We could learn a lot from honeybees.  They are definitely beeing what God has created them to bee!  Whether in your church,family, or whatever social situation comes your way, look for what you have in common with other people.  Todays’ world is spending way too much time on our differences and what divides us as a nation, or community, or even as potential friends.  Just like the bees, we all can work side by side doing what God has created each of us to do.  Now you go and Bee what God has created you to be.  He is your Heavenly King, or in this example, the Queen?………

See Ya!   Dan Ainsworth  wilderness preacher