Daily Encouragement (09/01/08) "Considering The Ant"

A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope, encouragement and exhortation. Home · About Us · · Podcast · Free email See here for more info. <Previous Message · Archives · Archive/print edition Monday, September 1, 2008 Pond view on our evening walk Yesterday afternoon, for the first time since her ankle break in May, Brooksyne was able to walk our full customary 2 mile walk on the uneven trail. Seeing the duck pond again was a pleasant sight and we share that view with our readers today. Listen to us share this message on your audio player. Monday, September 1, 2008 "Considering The Ant" "Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise!" (Proverbs 6:6). Today is Labor Day here in the US and, although it may not be a holiday where all of our readers live, today's theme will be applicable to readers everywhere. In the daily text Solomon is teaching the value of labor with a rather harsh rebuke to the sluggard. I recall a teaching moment from my dad as a small child. We were out visiting a public place in the Kansas City area where large black ants were lining the sidewalk. My dad saw me step on one and corrected me explaining they were living as God intended and were not harming us in any way. Edward O. Wilson is a professor at Harvard University and the world's foremost authority in myrmecology which is the study of ants. I recall an article of his in Reader's Digest many years ago and I marvel that anyone would devote their lives to such a study. His 736-page book "The Ants" is the standard work on the little critter and he has since written a sequel titled "Journey to the Ants"! King Solomon also found the ant an interesting point of observation and we find in his observation another timeless lesson from God's Word. Solomon said "go" and "consider". Well, you rarely have to "go" out of your way to see ants since regardless of where you may live, ants also inhabit nearby. But taking the time to "consider" the ant's ways takes some effort. Solomon was sure good at that for we read that "he described plant life, from the cedar of Lebanon to the hyssop that grows out of walls. He also taught about animals and birds, reptiles and fish" (1 Kings 4:33). Benjamin Franklin observed that "none preaches better than the ant, and she says nothing." Join me in considering the ways of the ant today: The ant demonstrates teamwork. Rev. Mackay, a missionary to Uganda, Africa tells how that one day he saw a colony of soldier ants suspend themselves by their bodies joined together. They were extending from the ground upward through the air to a piece of meat suspended from a branch of a tree, thus forming a sort of Jacob's ladder of themselves. Upon this ladder the feebler members of the ant colony climbed, and supplied their wants! The ant demonstrates diligence. They are busy in the work God created for them. The ant demonstrates preparation. "They store up their food in the summer" (Proverbs 30:25). The ant demonstrates strength. An ant lifts a load many, many times its own weight — I read that a man would have to lift a diesel locomotive and carry it on his back to compare with that of the ant! The ant demonstrates resourcefulness. A biologist tells how he watched an ant carrying a piece of straw and came to a crack in the earth that was too wide for it to cross. The ant remained still for a time, as though pondering the situation, then put the straw across the crack and walked over upon it! Solomon says to "consider its ways and be wise." Have you watched any ants lately? Are not all these characteristics needed in our lives today as we seek to be wise in God's estimation? Be encouraged today, Stephen & Brooksyne Weber Daily prayer: Father, help us to be teamworkers who are diligent, prepared, strong, resourceful and wise in all our endeavors. These characteristics common to the ant are of great benefit to us as we follow Your daily leading in our lives. We thank You for the ability to work physically and to enjoy the reward of our labor. We're grateful to You for supplying all that we have need of. Amen. Personal note: We got home from our trip to New England late Thursday afternoon. Due to morning work Friday we were unable to prepare a fresh message for Daily Encouragement. Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources (Click on the link to play) "Praise Adonai" Audio Info about multi-media files used on daily encouragement. Send a message to Stephen & Brooksyne.

Stephen and Brooksyne Weber - May 6, 2008 "We want to encourage you daily in your walk with Christ!" Personal Ministry Update Revised 04/15/08 Each weekday morning Brooksyne and I prepare these messages and distribute them at no cost to you and many others all over the world. Would you please consider a financial offering to support us in this encouragement ministry? Donations are tax deductible and will be receipted directly by my chaplaincy endorsing ministry. Thanks! See here for details. (2008 YTD financial offerings to Daily Encouragement Net through 8/31/2008: $14,264.00) Join: To receive these free "Daily Encouragement" devotionals each Monday-Friday through email see this page to subscribe. You can also subscribe to the rss feed. Cancel: To remove your address from this mailing list merely use the link automatically inserted by the mailing list software at the very bottom of each message. Weekly Version: The weekly version is designed for those who do not check their email regularly. It is merely the Friday message with a link to previous messages. To receive the free weekly version, send a blank email to this address. (To change addresses cancel your old address and then join again using your new address.) Please feel free to pass these messages on! Our other blogs: "A Daily Prayer" - The daily prayer from each daily encouragement message. "A Little Foolishness" - A collection of humorous and satirical stories drawn mostly from our years of ministry, as well as my sometimes fertile imagination. "Clear Minded" - Longer, periodic articles on specific issues impacting the church. Daily Encouragement Net is an affiliate of Christianbook.com. Any orders placed to Christian Book Distributers using this link or any specific product link to a recommended resource in a daily encouragement message will help our Daily Encouragement ministry through a small commission on the sale. Thank you for using these links when purchasing online through CBD! Personal Mission Statement "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity." How to become a child of God Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission; and the King James Version. © Copyright 2008 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved Daily Encouragement Net Stephen & Brooksyne Weber 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 Contact us "Living securely today anchored in God's solid foundation" www.dailyencouragement.net