6 Life Lessons You Can Learn from An Ant

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Proverbs 6:6-8

“Go to the ant, you sluggard;

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.

1. Ants are driven by purpose

By purpose I mean having a clear long-term objective or goal which shapes everything you do. For example, one ant’s sole job description is to find food for the colony. This is their purpose, and they input all of their time and energy into this.

Jeremiah 29:11

“For I know the plans I have for you”, declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future”.

God made you for a purpose. If you are unsure of your purpose in life, talk to God and read the Bible continuously especially the new testament, and God will reveal HIS reasons for your existence.

2. Ants work as part of a team

Ants are team workers and work together in order to achieve something great. Likewise, in order for you to achieve something substantial in life, you must align yourself with others who can help propel you to another level.

There is a popular saying that no man is an island and this is confirmed by the Bible.

Hebrews 10:24-25

“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another - and all the more as you see the day approaching…

We need one another because God has placed destiny helpers in each of our lives who will help us learn to value and love one another and thus fulfil our purpose.

3. Ants have a time to rest and a time to work

Ants have to work with the natural seasons, so in the summer, they gather food and in winter, they hibernate, to conserve energy because of the lack of food. It’s about knowing when you need to stop.

Ecclesiastes 3:1 & 2

“For everything there is a season,

A time for every activity under the heaven.

A time to be born and a time to die,

A time to plant and a time to harvest.”

4. Ants think big

In the animal/insect kingdom, ants can seem like one of the most insignificant insects on the planet because they are so small in size. But the colonies they build and their contribution to the animal kingdom is extremely significant and great.

This should assure you that you are an extremely important and valuable part of this world. God created you with inbuilt greatness so walk in it. Don’t worry about how the world perceives you, just understand your worth through the eyes of the Bible.

5. Ants prepare ahead of time

Ants prepare their food in Summer because they know that there will be a time when there will be no food to find in winter time, so they are constantly preparing for a season which is yet to come upon them.

7. Ants serve one another

Living for ourselves is a lonely existence. Serving people goes that one step further and asks ‘what can I do for you?’ You start to live beyond yourself and purposefully contribute positively to others.

Hebrews 6:10

“God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them”

8. Ants care for their fellow Ants.

Caring means sharing one another’s burdens even though sometimes that load can be heavy. In the end, the act of caring strengthens the whole team because the Bible states that God will not give us a bigger load than each of us can carry.

Taking our cue from the ants, did you know that when a few ants in a colony are infected by a fungal disease, they lick it off one another thus inadvertently spreading the disease throughout the colony but, each ant only receives as much of the disease that their individual immune system can fight off effectively! Loving can be painful but it is worth it.

1 Corinthians 13:13

“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

FATHER’S DAY -USE IT TO REFLECT GOD’S LOVE

The annual special day set aside to celebrate fathers and father figures in our lives is upon us once more. Father’s Day is a chance to show our love for our fathers and father figures. It is however sad that for some fathers, this is the only day in a year that they will receive recognition from their families.

Unlike Mother’s Day celebrations when time, effort and strategic planning is expended to surprise and delight our mothers, the Father’s Day celebrations tend to be low key, hastily assembled and hardly prioritized. There will be cards with corny messages and the predictable socks as presents for those fathers who are remembered. Sometimes, it feels as if fathers are an afterthought in our priorities. There are even some in our society (some fathers included), who subscribe to the view that a father is not an important or relevant figure in a child’s upbringing. Then there are those fathers who are emotionally absent from their children even when physically present.

This laisse faire attitude towards the role of fatherhood has sadly created an acceptable convention that the annual Father’s Day celebration is inconsequential.

These negative assumptions and portrayal of the role of fatherhood must be aggressively challenged and corrected. A fathers’ role is hugely significant and his presence in a child’s upbringing truly meaningful. He is the first male figure a girl child loves and the nature of that love will forever shape her outlook on dating and selection of a life partner. For a boy child, a father’s love will shape his understanding of leadership, work ethics, his views towards female members of society, his respect for others and his own self-respect.

The role of fatherhood is important and when absent, a vacuum is left in the human soul. It is no coincidence that many young people who join gangs do so as an alternative solution to filling the vacuum left by absentee fathers.

Human relationships are complex and at times they can be cruel and they include our interactions with some of the father figures in our lives but, we must let go of those negative emotions if we want to thrive in life. If we hold on to unforgiveness towards our fathers, those negative emotions can imprison our soul, stifle the progression of our life journey and sabotage the chances of success in our interpersonal relations.

One of the best expressions of love is forgiveness. Forgiveness is impartial. It is to be extended to all. 1st Corinthians 13 explains it this way:-

1 Corinthians 13

New International Version

13 If I speak in the tongues[a] of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,[b] but do not have love, I gain nothing.

4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. 12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

Let us learn to extend forgiveness to those fathers who we feel have failed in their role. Yes, Fathers’ Day is normally used to honour the fathers we love and respect but we can also use it as an opportunity to reflect God’s love to all fathers, whether they live with us or not, whether they are supportive or not, whether we feel that they are deserving of our love or not. This day that has been set aside as a father appreciation day, can be used for our emotional healing through forgiveness. This is our chance to reflect God’s love to our fellow human being.

God in heaven is the ultimate example of the perfect father - loving, giving, patient and protective. He is God but our fathers on earth are mere men. They will fail us in small ways and unfortunately, there are some who will fail us in significant ways but Jesus Christ taught us how to walk in liberty through forgiveness. In the Bible passage that is commonly referred to as the Lord’s Prayer, we are taught to approach God our father with our requests but in the course of doing so, we must forgive others the same way that we are asking God to forgive us of our sins.

God’s willingness as a Father to meet our needs is predicated on the premise that we come to him in humility by first showing others forgiveness. You see, God loves his children and his children include our earthly fathers, yes even those who hurt and fail us.

On this Father’s Day, let us show love to all father figures in our lives.

Happy Father’s Day!

Matthew 6:9-13

New International Version

9 “This, then, is how you should pray:

“‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, 10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us today our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation,[a] but deliver us from the evil one

Frequently Asked Questions About Easter.

What is Palm Sunday?

Answer: The Sunday before Easter Sunday is called Palm Sunday.

In the Bible, the book of Matthew (21:1-11), explains how Jesus approached Jerusalem riding on a donkey and some of the people in the crowd spread their cloaks on the floor while others cut palm branches and spread them on the road. They were all shouting “Hosanna to the Son of David”, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’ “Hosanna in the highest”.

This is why the Sunday before Easter Sunday is called Palm Sunday.

What is good Friday?

Answer: The Easter Friday is called good Friday because it reminds us of the day Jesus took our sins on the cross and died for mankind.

Why do Christians celebrate Easter Sunday?

Answer: Easter Sunday is when Jesus conquered death. It is a celebration of Jesus Christ rising bodily from the grave. After he rose, he ascended into heaven and sat at the right hand of God the Father, where he is now looking down on each one of us and interceding for us.

Why do Christians generally forbid unlawful killing but celebrate the killing of Jesus Christ?

Answer: It is true that the Bible forbids murder (see Exodus 20:13; Deuteronomy 5:17) but Christians celebrate the death of Jesus Christ on the cross because he willingly took our punishment on him on the cross. This is reflected in the severity of the punishment that he received including nails being punched into his hands and feet and his long lingering death. This is as bad as any punishment we would have had to endure if God punished each of us for breaking his commandments. Because of Jesus Christ’s selfless act on the Cross, Romans 10:9 states that if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

If Jesus Christ is the son of God, why didn’t he stop himself being murdered?

Answer: Jesus had power to stop his own death but he chose not to use his supernatural powers as Son of God, because of his love for humanity. He knew that the only way that humankind could be reconciled with God the father was for him, Jesus, to willingly die as punishment for our transgressions of God’s law.

How can God be a good father and still allow his son to be killed when he had the power to stop the killing?

Answer: The Bible tells us in John 3:16 that “God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life”.

How can Jesus Christ save me from my sins when he could not save himself from death?

Answer: Jesus Christ could have saved himself from death but chose not to do so because he wanted humankind to be reconciled to God the Father. Humankind had driven a wedge in their relationship between God the Father and themselves when they broke his commandments about how to live. God the Father also laid down punishments for those who broke his law and because he created the world, he could dictate the laws. Humankind’s only chance of being forgiven for their sins and reconciling their relationship with God was if someone took the punishment for humankind’s sin so Jesus Christ did exactly that.

How can the death of someone over 2000 years ago, affect my life today when I have never met him?

Answer: The Bible answers it in this manner - see John 16:33, “ I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world!”

When you accept Jesus Christ as your saviour, you are changed from deep inside your inner man because you gain an ally in the form of the Holy Spirit who comes to live in your spirit and guides you through life. This is a direct result of Jesus Christ dying so many years ago for humankind.

Did Jesus Christ rise metaphorically from the dead or for real?

Answer: He rose bodily for real and the Bible tells us that many people saw him, ate and drunk with him and also touched him, after he rose from the dead.

If Jesus Christ took my sins on him on the cross then why doesn’t he stop me from sinning today?

Answer: God has given each one a choice to follow or to reject him. He will not impose his will on mankind but offers the means to overcome temptation from sin. It is up to us if we take up that offer.

Which one is more important, Easter or Christmas?

Answer: Although these dates are not the actual dates the events occurred, they are both equally important as they celebrate different aspects of Jesus Christ’s life. Christmas celebrates the birth of Jesus and Easter celebrates his death, resurrection and ascension into heaven.

Why not join our Fruitful Life weekly meetings where we discuss these and other fascinating Bible stories and topics in an informal environment. It is a chance for you to make friends as well. Due to the pandemic, we now meet on Zoom on Tuesdays 7.30pm-8.45pm; Wednesdays 6pm-7pm and Thursdays 7.30pm-8.30pm. Zoom Meeting ID 820 941 4079 or call 0203 051 2874 or send contact us via our contact page on this website.