“Go to the ant … consider its ways and be wise! It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest.” Proverbs 6:6
I heard of a Christian man who took this verse to heart and bought himself an ant farm! He went out for the day and when he returned home he was amazed at how much they had accomplished.
Ants are small “yet they are extremely wise” (Proverbs 30:25). They understand if you do small amounts regularly you will end up accomplishing a lot. Furthermore, they don’t need a commander, overseer or ruler to tell them what to do or to encourage them when they lack motivation. The coming winter acts as motivation enough.
Unlike ants, we seem to be dissatisfied to take on the small jobs or unwilling to make the small changes. We want significant tasks that produce quick results. We become impatient unless we can see something measurable happening. Whether we are thinking of physical activities, emotional maturity, spiritual growth, small steps can make a big difference. Ten minutes a day is 60 hours a year. In ten minutes we could exercise, pull out a few weeds, make a phone call to encourage someone, pray, read, these things done regularly can make a positive difference. As we make small incremental changes in our lives they can add up to a significant difference over time.
We often think that we can’t achieve a great deal. That either our efforts are so small or the task too great but if we “go to the ant and consider its ways” we will become wise as we follow its example.
Yep…this is one of my most important values i call advancing or plodding.
You know what i find interesting…most of us get our ‘reputations’ from our child and teenage hood. I.E Trav can’t cook. So because Trav couldn’t (or didn’t) cook when he was 17…he carries this through his 20’s and 30’s and life. I think it’s a bit too early to say whether i can cook or not. [Also i made a list of all the things i can cook now…i need more then one hand now!]
Sometimes we label ourselves very quickly. I’m not good at…i’ll never be able to…
I think it’s too early to say.
I was listening to the Tasmanian miner rescuers today on the news and their approach to the rescue had been small steady steps which added up to a successful rescue. They knew it was too dangerous to rush in with great vigor.
Great example of – going to the ant.
Thanks for pointing me this way, Susan. I had never thought about this. That’s part of my problem -I always want to finish something when I start it and become frustrated when I’m not able to.