Look to the ant....

Alone, they weren’t bigger than a hangnail or a thorn in the thumb. But they were even more annoying than those in early spring when hundreds boiled out of cracks in our driveway, then started migrating inside the house. Thanks to ants, I realized I had a spiritual problem.

At first there were just a few that we could whap or wipe away with a wet paper towel in seconds. Then came the morning when they held a wriggling revival in the cat’s food dish (he never was a member of the “Clean Plate Club”), filled the grandstands of the Honey Nut Cheerios box, and started scaling the heights of the trash bin for more delectable discards. Every toaster crumb and ice cream drop came under mass scrutiny.

I shooed the cat outside and sprayed ant poison. Black square ant traps became part of the house décor. And still they came.

One early morning, after letting in our feline night watch guard (for what other reason would he stay outside all night?), my husband crawled back in bed and said, “It wasn’t pretty.” When I got up a little later, it still wasn’t pretty. The kitchen looked like someone had sprinkled coffee grounds all over the floor and cabinets. And this was where I cooked?

Okay, so I had a sanitation problem. But what of the spiritual problem? Sometimes it takes tiny annoyances to help you realize how short your fuse can be. I got snippy at my husband. Whiny to my friends. And, oh so mean, when I came in the kitchen and saw a wiggling line over the floor, up the cabinet side, and into places I’d just cleaned out!

Well, the first frost has come, and yesterday we dared to take the plastic wrap “seal” off the plastic lidded container of cereal. We haven’t seen the enemy for at least a week.

And I went to my Bible.
“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.” –Proverbs 6:6-8
“Ants are creatures of little strength, yet they store up their food in the summer.”—Proverbs 30:25

Despite being tiny and fragile, they excel in industriousness. They do their jobs without special incentives! They’re fascinating--if you look up “ant” in an encyclopedia, you’ll learn more than you thought possible. And that’s just a start. A Bible dictionary reveals more:

*Ants in the Holy Land place their nests near threshing floors or storage bins for grain. They stay near the food!
*The grain becomes their winter food. A stocked pantry!
*They consort with certain insects (like aphids) that secrete sweet juices they crave, and store their insect-friends’ eggs with their own for future use. I’m not sure what to call this—slavery? Co-dependency? Let your imagination fly!

But a spiritual application? For me, Psalm 19:10 came to mind: that God’s Word is “sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb. By them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.”

A regular intake of God’s Word is essential for spiritual survival. In His foreknowledge of difficult events to come, God may impress on us to “feed” upon a certain portion of His Word more diligently in preparation for that time. In my late twenties, I obeyed nudges to memorize large parts of Philippians and Romans 8. A few years later, when my parents died, my heart was fortified to endure a spiritual winter. When my mind was too numb to study scripture, I could still “harvest” the sweetness of His Word—those reminders to rejoice (Philippians) and to know that nothing could separate me from His love (Romans 8:39).

I’m still not fond of ants scurrying all over my kitchen (and even finding my toothbrush in the bathroom!). But I am in awe of their Creator and stand reminded that I, too, need to be industrious in taking in the sweet nectar of Scripture.