Go to the Ant
Below is an excerpt from a letter from a South African family who emigrated to Portugal and then to Scotland. They have been keeping friends and loved ones enthralled by their unusual adventures, adaptability to foreign cultures, new languages, and rich experiences. In an age where old-fashioned letter writing is a lost art, I find their updates in my inbox a welcome relief from all that is forever urgent! Here Felicity is sharing a snippet of her precious life before the Lord came to fetch her!
What I had wanted to say when writing to you, is that my days are made up of many small things. I am knitting socks for myself, I play the piano and I do my Joe Wick exercises each day. I do a little housework in the house and the equivalent in the garden, sweeping, weeding and tidying up. Shopping when needed and the making of meals. Helping with the washing.
There are lots of small activities to keep me well occupied and though all appear individual, we are asked in Zechariah 4:10 Who has despised the day of small things?
He was of course referring to the temple that was being built that was much smaller than Solomon’s temple. The daily activities are small, but one day I will have another completed pair of socks, the piano playing improves day by day, I am very fit with the exercises, and the house is tidy and clean, and the garden keeps improving.
In light of our focus this week on Solomon’s warnings to the lazy man, “How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep?” Felicity’s simple daily routines during a difficult phase deeply challenged me.
It must be noted that throughout Proverbs, hard work and diligence are paired with wisdom, understanding, and humility; while laziness or slothfulness are paired with foolishness, ignorance, and pride. The message is clear and universal: the diligent get the job done while the lazy are empty talkers. This self-discipline of the ant — for they have “no captain, overseer or ruler” — and their proactive approach to life (gathering supplies in the summer) earns them the praise of Solomon, an industrious man himself!
Unfortunately, there are all sorts of fallacies about work these days. While some worship their work, often driven by greed, others are lazy couch potatoes, trying to get away with doing the minimum. For this reason, I want to take us back to Genesis 1, for the first work done on earth was done by God. He took pleasure in the outcome of his activity, for He stopped each day to assess the quality of his work — declaring every time that it was good. Then God did something else — He instituted work. The Bible says, “God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.”[1] Remember, this was prior to the Fall!
Similarly, Paul encourages us in his letter to the Colossians that “whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”[2] In other words, we are accountable to God and stewards of the gifts He has given us. As such, our work should flow to Him from grateful hearts.
GRACE CHALLENGE FOR THE WEEK: May God help us steer clear of the many pitfalls associated with work, for workaholism and laziness are strategies from the enemy. In both cases, there is a lack of self-discipline. It is, therefore, essential to go back to the Bible, for while we are called to be wise stewards of God’s provisions, we are also expected to rest in the promise of His care – for your heavenly Father knows that you need them. [3] May God help us to distinguish between our ‘wants’ and our ‘needs.’
