Refining Influence Of Afflictions

A Beekeeper once told F.B. Meyer how some of the young bees are nurtured to ensure their healthy development. The queen lays each egg in a 6-sided cell which is filled with enough pollen and honey to feed upon until it reaches a certain stage of maturity. The top is then sealed with a capsule of wax. When the occupant has exhausted its supply of nourishment, the time has come for the tiny creature to be released from its confinement. But what a wrestling, tussling, and straining it endures to get through that wax seal. The opening is so narrow that in the agony of exit, the bee rubs off the membrane that encases its wings. Thus, when it finally does emerge, it is able to fly! The man telling F.B. Meyer the story said that one time a moth got into the hive and devoured the wax capsules. As a result, the young bees crawled out without any effort or trouble, but they couldn't fly. Soon the mature insects, seeing the pitiful, unproductive state of the new arrivals instinctively proceeded to sting them to death.

Meyer drew from this information a spiritual application. He asks, "Are you congratulating yourself on having an easy time in life with no hardships or difficulties to bear? Then beware, lest you lose your 'wing power' like the handicapped bees, and perish miserably in the dust of defeat."