Are there grasshoppers in Heaven?

I attended a speech tonight given by Don Piper author of 90 Minutes in Heaven: A True Story of Death & Life It was quite interesting as he detailed a fatal car crash he was in back in 1989. That’s right, I said fatal, he was revived 90 minutes later (thus the title of his book) and in some of his talk he described his time at the pearly gates. He described the music he heard; not just one song but thousands of songs from every direction all at once. Each song was different and unique but all the songs blended together to make one beautiful sound.

Have you ever sat on your front porch and listened to the crickets chirp or the birds sing? It’s much the same in that it may be thousands of singers but they all come together with one pleasing sound. Actually when most people hear ‘crickets’ they’re really hearing the combination of grasshoppers and crickets. Both are in the same order of the insect world but have enough difference that they are of different families so you often find the two together.

Crickets chirp by rubbing a scraper on one front wing against teeth type protrusions on its other front wing. They are mostly nocturnal and are attracted to lights. They would prefer to live outdoors but occasionally get in. Crickets will eat just about anything that isn’t nailed down. This includes silk, wool, paper, fruits, vegetables and all kinds of food. It’s said they even eat rubber; there goes the insect proof idea behind rubber mulch. Control of Crickets usually is not necessary but even if just one gets inside his (only the males chirp) noise will keep you up all night. So for that situation you need to either put a pillow over your head or get the flashlight and start looking. If control is needed it’s best to use their bellies against them. Niban bait is one product that works very well for cricket control and it’s a simple process of shaking it out in a 5 to 10 foot band around the home.

Grasshopper’s song is produced by rubbing its hind legs or front wing against another part of its body creating friction and sound. Only the female grasshoppers make this music. All locusts are grasshoppers but not all grasshoppers are locusts. A grasshopper becomes what we know as a locust when huge numbers are produced and they have to move to a new area to find food. In years past great swarms were produced and they would descend on crops and vegetation decimating everything. Swarms would get so big that cars would hydroplane out of control because they were so thick on the roads. Thankfully this does not happen that much anymore. There are over 1000 species in the U.S. and over 23,000 worldwide. To control grasshoppers you should really aim to get them before they are full grown. A lawn and shrub treatment would do while they are still young ‘hoppers’ before they mature and mate. This should be done late spring with a liquid residual such as Talstar or other product labeled for this use. Many times a late cold snap or freeze will do the work for you and no treatment is needed.

I guess the answer to my title is no; what little of the Bible I know say’s this.

Matthew 6:20
But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:

So this must mean that that when I make it to the pearly gates I’ll be out of a job but if I want to enjoy a little slice of Heaven now, I can just go out on the front porch.