Go To The Ant

My very close friend and his wife had their first child arrive this week and i was overwhelmed with joy for them. I was fascinated by the child and the fact that life as these two friends of mine had known it was about to change drastically. One of the things that struck my mind was the sudden thought that they had begun now not to live for themselves but for the generations. Indeed up until the arrival of their baby, life was about taking care of just the two of them. Today they not only have to care for the little one, but they have to start thinking and planning further ahead than they've probably ever done. Truth is raising a child requires a fair amount of wisdom that you don't find readily available. Much of it you learn on the job. The problem is that sometimes we try to bring up our children the only way we know how. The only way we know how, is usually the way we were raised. Unfortunately things are different now, what with so much TV around. One afternoon while I was visiting my library, I noticed a group of preschoolers gathered for story time. The book they were reading was There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly. After the librarian finished the first page, she asked the children, "Do you think she'll die?" "Nope," a little girl in the back said. "I saw this last night on Fear Factor."

I thought i'd post a few notes from my sunday service message today. I felt it spoke to me personally & practically about preparing for the future. The message was entitled The Pursuit Of Wisdom.

Proverbs 6v6 says "Go to the Ant you sluggard; consider it's ways and be wise! it has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores it's provisions in summer and gathers it's food at harvest." The pursuit of Wisdom means that we must be willing to learn from even the smallest of things. It's amazing to me that God directs us to learn something as important as Wisdom from something tiny and seemingly useless. So what wisdom can you gain from the Ant? When you look at the characteristics of an ant you can already see that they is a lot to learn. here are some of them;

-They are highly industrious insects

-They're laborious creatures

-They work unwearidly till the work is complete

-They work quietly without show

-They work together in astonishing systems of organisation

-They're ingenious carpenters and masons in building their homes and storage units

-They fight to protect their colony to the death

-They carry out work without being forced by an overseer

-Not one ant exists without definiteness of purpose and duty

Let's go back to that opening scripture Proverbs 6v6, "Go to the Ant you sluggard; consider it's ways and be wise! it has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores it's provisions in summer and gathers it's food at harvest." So what Wisdom is there in the Ant for you? The Ant has an inbuilt ability to discern the seasons. It knows that when summer is upon the land, food is plenty-some. It also knows that after summer then comes winter and food is scarce. So during the summer the Ant collects food not for the present but for the future. We must learn to discern the seasons of life and know what to do with the resources we have. Most people enjoy the seasons of plenty and forget to store up for the winters of life.

The Ant therefore teaches us amongst other things diligence, discipline, discernment and foresight. These are key attributes to build into yourself and to practice especially in todays uncertain political and economic storms. They'll save you and the generations to come. The average worker ant lives for 90 days only, yet he labors diligently in preparation for a future that other ants will enjoy. Don't let the lack of wisdom rob you of the chance to secure your future. Go to the ant, get wisdom and STAND YOUR GROUND.