610_Lessons from the Ant (Proverbs 6:6-11) Psalm 6:6-11 Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. 7 Without having any chief, officer, or ruler, 8 she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest. 9 How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep? 10 A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, 11 and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man. On a hot summer afternoon, a pastor once watched a line of ants crossing a footpath near his home. People stepped over them without a second thought. Children ran past. Someone even brushed them away absentmindedly. Yet the ants never stopped. They carried tiny crumbs many times their own size, each one moving with quiet determination. No one shouted orders at them. No whistle blew. No supervisor hovered above them. And yet, every ant knew exactly what to do. The pastor later remarked, “That afternoon, the ants preached a sermon to me without saying a single word.” Scripture tells us that God often teaches His people through what He has already made. Long before classrooms, books, or podcasts, creation itself served as God’s living curriculum. Job reminds us, “But ask the beasts, and they will teach you; the birds of the heavens, and they will tell you… and the fish of the sea will declare to you” (Job 12:7–8). Jeremiah laments that even birds understand seasons and timing, while God’s people fail to discern His ways (Jer. 8:7). Isaiah goes so far as to say that an ox knows its owner and a donkey its master’s feeding trough, yet Israel does not understand its God (Isa. 1:3). God uses creation not merely to inspire awe, but to expose our neglect of obvious wisdom. It is in this rich tradition that Proverbs 6 invites us to learn a lesson from one of the smallest creatures on earth. “Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise.” The writer does not begin with a lecture, a threat, or a punishment. Instead, he points to an observation. Watch. Consider. Learn. Wisdom, here, is not hidden in abstract ideas. It is visible in everyday faithfulness. The ant quietly embodies what many humans struggle to practice. The audience addressed is the sluggard—the lazy, the procrastinator, the one who delays responsibility. God does not first accuse this person of rebellion or immorality, but of inattentiveness to wisdom that is plainly visible. The ant works “without having any chief, officer, or ruler.” No one forces her. No one supervises her. Her diligence flows from within. This reveals a profound truth: true discipline is internal, not imposed. In our spiritual lives, this distinction matters deeply. Anyone can work hard when watched, pressured, or praised. But spiritual maturity is revealed in what we do when no one is watching. Paul exhorts believers, “Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord” (Rom. 12:11). Our obedience is not meant to be driven by fear or
