“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 NIV.

We are commended to the ant as an example of wisdom. What is the particular wisdom of the ant that is spoken of there? First, ants coordinate their activities with one another. The dog-eat-dog of our contemporary life is not found in an ant colony. They go out together, they cooperate, and they share their strength. There is coordination in everything they do. They do not act as ruthless individuals, ignoring each other. They have a collective objective. And secondly, they store their provisions in summer; they gather their food in harvest. They take what is available when it is available. How important that is.

So many times, I think, we pray for God to make some provision for us. But when provision is made, we are not ready to receive it and we miss what God has provided because we don’t take it at the appointed time. We want God to suit our schedule rather than adapting our schedule to God.

To me, life is something like a freeway with exits. And one of the things about a freeway is if you miss the exit you can’t get back. I would advise you to take God’s provision while it is available. See what God is doing, and align yourself with it.

—Derek Prince

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Materials used by kind permission of Derek Prince Ministries.