Be Like the Ant
7:02 AM. 1 July 2025.
To be able to write this early in the morning is miraculous. For weeks my circadian rhythm was set to night mode that I’d go to bed at 5/6 am and wake up at 12/1pm. I attempted to change that countless times to no avail. Yet here I am, with my internal clock finally having been reset. I credit this fully to the Holy Spirit.
Last night (between 1 and 2 am) I asked God to wake me up in the morning and help me reset my system. Here I am. AWAKE. At 7am. To be more specific, I woke up at 6am. My alarm came on, and I woke up. Unlike the countless times prior to this morning when I’d turn off my alarm and go back to bed, I actually woke up this time.
So wake up, sleepyhead. How long will you lie there?
When will you wake up and get out of bed?
If you keep nodding off and thinking, “I’ll do it later,”
or say to yourself, “I’ll just sit back awhile and take it easy,”
just watch how the future unfolds! – Proverbs 6: 9- 10 TPT
On Sunday my sisters and I read Proverbs 6: 6 – 11. We cross-referenced it with other verses in the Bible about work ethic and the principles of that.
Here are the related verses:
- 2 Thessalonians 3: 10 – 12
- Ephesians 4: 28
- Galatians 6: 7 – 9 (though it’s in the context of salvation, the principles of sowing and reaping stands).
- Ephesians 5: 16
- Psalm 127: 1- 2
- Genesis 8: 22 (on seed time and harvest, concept of sowing and reaping)
The Bible is clear on the command of working. It specifically says to work and work hard at that. 2 Thessalonians 3: 10 – 12 urges believers to work to earn the food they eat. Ephesians 4: 28 says to do something useful with your own hands. Galatians 6 talks about reaping what you sow. Ephesians 5: 16 says to make the most of every opportunity. In addition to working hard we also looked at Psalm 127: 1 where it states that labour will be in vain unless the Lord builds. This means that ‘hard work’ in itself is not enough. The labour must be accompanied by or start with God. The direction of the labour, the components of the labour and even the conception of the labour has to be rooted in Jesus. If not, it will be ‘in vain’ as Psalm 127: 1 and 2 say.
As a sole trader artist reading about the ant in Proverbs 6, I marvel at its independence. Apparently that ant has no commander or overseer. It just does the work. I read that ants can carry weight far above their own weight. I’m not saying I’ll work myself to the ground, but I’m certainly inspired. Working alone can be a challenge as it takes a lot of discipline to stick to schedule. Perhaps it comes easier to others, but it is a weakness I need the Lord’s strength in. I’d love to justify that weakness by saying “I’m a creative person and therefore this is so”. But I know that’s just an excuse. Instead, I’ll be like the ant. It just works. Without external prompting. Just. Does. It. It works.
Based on Psalm 127:1 I’ll continue to seek the Lord on the direction of each painting. What I’ll do differently now is also seek Him on administrative tasks. I say this because my art is usually based on scripture and prompting of the Holy Spirit. It’s the administrative tasks that I need to improve on in terms of involving God in.
To put into practice, my sisters and I implemented the verses we meditated on into our journals on the section of productivity. We named the prompt “Proverbs 6: 6- 11”. This is the section where we write how we were productive that day. A constant reminder to not slack off or be sluggish. To instead be like the ant that independently works hard consistently. Below is a screenshot of the digital version of my journal. Refer to the top right corner of the journal for productivity section.
I’m so thankful that God woke me up this morning. I’ve got 12 unfinished paintings to work on so having a longer day today is just so exciting!! I’ll conclude by looking at Proverbs 6: 9 – 10 and Psalm 127: 1- 2 side by side.
Proverbs 6: 9- 10 TPT
So wake up, sleepyhead. How long will you lie there?
When will you wake up and get out of bed?
If you keep nodding off and thinking, “I’ll do it later,”
or say to yourself, “I’ll just sit back awhile and take it easy,”
just watch how the future unfolds! –
Psalm 127: 1- 2 TPT
If God’s grace doesn’t help the builders,
they will labor in vain to build a house.
If God’s mercy doesn’t protect the city,
all the sentries will circle it in vain.
It really is senseless to work so hard
from early morning till late at night,
toiling to make a living for fear of not having enough.
God can provide for his devoted lovers even while they sleep!
This is to say, be productive, work hard, but don’t do that outside of God. Do everything with God’s direction, wisdom, grace and strength. He is so gracious He’ll answer when you pray. I know because I’ve only repeated countless times in this post how He woke me up. It may be small to others, but to me that is a feat and testament to God’s Goodness in my life.