Praying Mantis - PT367

strike a pose

Feb 19, 2025

Pray without ceasing

1 Thessalonians 5:17 (ESV)

It was a Fall morning. The Texas hill country was quiet and serene. I sat on the back porch of a VRBO house, sipping coffee with two angels God gifted as earthly sisters. Something moved across the table - a pencil-thin bug. Insects are my Achilles’ heel. They creep me out as they move about.

“It’s a praying mantis,” one angel said.

“Hmmm. Really?” I asked. “I don’t remember seeing one this close, if ever.”

The peculiar-looking creature did resemble cartoon characters I had seen — some sweet, some not. I felt the urge to create space between me and the bulgy-eyed climber. It moved with ease across the ceramic terrain—my blue coffee cup.

“It’s considered a blessing to be visited by one,” she continued.

“Interesting” was all I could muster as it slinked across the porcelain obstacle.

Its movement was calculated. Methodical. Precise fluidity — pausing only when the silence was broken by chirps and whistles, nature’s version of friendly conversation. I sat close enough to see its oversized eyes resting on an undersized head, which rotated in ways not expected or natural.

Google tells me that a Praying Mantis’s head can turn 180 degrees, offering a 360-degree view.

Okay, that's pretty cool.

The antennas moved eerily, with a soft reach and retract motion. It was as if they were touching hidden things floating in the air. The idea of something lightly brushing my skin -- creating a tickle that would be so unexpected I met it with a slap before assessing what it was -- came to mind. Thankfully, the antennae never turned toward me. Apparently, the coffee aroma drew more attention from the bug’s olfactory system than my morning breath. Or so Google explained when I researched the creature's bodily features and learned the wire-thin probes were purposed like our nose.

My insect repulsion relaxed only after watching this shy little thing rest in a pose I recognized. Its slender body, propped up on its hind legs, had two claw-like extensions in front that lay in what I viewed as palm-to-palm. The creature before me seemed to be sitting in prayer. With each new step, the front hands broke, explored, extended, and retreated, falling back into a prayer formation.

What if we moved through our daily terrain with the same prayerful posture? Reach out. Touch. Feel all about. Return to a meditative state, processing all the stimuli found along the way. How would we see and hear differently? How would our connections develop and flourish? Would we connect more if we used our extremities to explore, heightened with sensitivity or sympathy? Could gentle hands on someone’s shoulder ease someone’s pain? Would extended arms catch a fallen spirit, exhausted and worn? Would a default prayerful state help us meditate without a conscious thought?

Cultures believe, as my friend mentioned, that when visited by a Praying Mantis, it is sent to you. A reminder to slow down. Meditate. Watch. Be silent and focus on your spirituality. Take time to pray. Speak to God. Listen and hear. Through prayer and meditation, inspiration is found in the gifts God shares, and I believe He sent one to me during a peaceful morning sunrise.

**The word mantis is Greek. It means divine, seer, or prophet. It is an offshoot of mainesthai, which means “to be inspired.” ( The Etymology of “Mantis” – Useless Etymology). - Photo by Kim**

The honor of the visit still lingers. A photo of that Praying Mantis hovers to the right of my computer screen. And I catch my hands sometimes resting in the same prayer-like position as I pause to think about what to write.

I’m unsure if it’s a habit I have always had or something new I do. Something I picked up on a rickety country porch from a creepy little bug on a day it came my way.

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Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.

Psalm 19:14 (ESV)

My mouth shall speak wisdom; the mediation of my heart shall be understanding.

Psalm 49: 3 (ESV)

Be safe, stay kind, show grace, and pray. Know this - the world and all in it sit in the hands of God.

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