PEOPLE WHO THINK AHEAD ALWAYS STAY AHEAD
One of my favorite books in the Bible is the Book of Proverbs. It is one of the books in the Bible that talks about anything you can think of. The book talks about life, men, women, children, wealth, riches, success, health, discipline, marriage, money, business, management, leadership, education, self-control, wisdom, planning, etc. This great book talks about anything that pertains to life. One of the most popular and interesting topics in the book of Proverbs can be found in chapter 6:6 which reads like;
“Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise. It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores its provision in summer and gathers food at harvest.”
I hope you will agree with me that this topic is very interesting. To help you understand this passage I think I must explain to you who a sluggard is. A sluggard is a slothful person. A slothful person is simply a person who feels very lazy about life and everything. A sluggard is a person who cannot think for himself or herself. Why is the sluggard being advised to consider the ways of the ant? This is primarily because the ant has a lot to teach the sluggard.
The ant is an insect that never lack lacks food. The ant never begs. It is an insect that is always loaded with surplus food. The ant never gets worried when the global economy crushes. Do you want to know why? The answer is that the ant is an insect that has a higher sense of initiative, wisdom and foresight.
People who have foresight always emerge as winners in every society. If you really want to stay ahead in these times, then I would like to encourage you to think ahead always. This is what we call foresight. People who lack foresight never amount to anything in life. People who think ahead are able to predict, plan ahead and develop strategies to meet opportunities and the challenges that lie ahead in every given situation.
Another positive trait of the ant is that, it has a higher sense of initiative. In other words, the ant is able to think for itself. The passage reads that the ant has no commander to tell it what to do and what not to do, but because it has a higher sense of initiative, it solves its problems before they develop to become a crisis. Because the ant knows times and seasons, it is able to predict problems and create solutions even before it surfaces. People who have a higher sense of initiative are able to think and work without supervision.
“NO BEES, NO HONEY; NO WORK, NO MONEY.”
Ancient English Proverb
The third positive trait of the ant is that it is an insect that is full of wisdom. What is wisdom? Wisdom is the ability to know the right thing to do at any given time. How does the ant display its wisdom in this passage? The Bible says that the ant stores its food when there is harvest to prepare for the time of lack. The ant knows that opportunities do not always last, so it takes advantages of seasonal opportunities whenever they show up. This is what separates the winners from the losers. Wise people always take advantage of their God-given opportunities.
If you are person who lack foresight, initiative and wisdom, then I can easily predict where you are on the ladder of financial success. This is because the Bible describes anybody who lacks these great qualities as a slothful person. And since slothful people never make it to the top, then I think it would not be very difficult to predict your present condition now. I know this may be a bitter pill for you; however I think I cannot help you to enjoy your divine blessings, unless I first help you to diagnose what is preventing you from entering your promise land.
“If any of you lack wisdom, he should ask God who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.” –James 1:5
The good news is that it is never too late to change. You can first pray for our heavenly Father to endow you with these great qualities. Take your time to pray about this topic. Anybody can develop the three qualities the Bible talks about. You do not need to spend your life in a quagmire of hopelessness and poverty. Think ahead. Plan ahead. Pray ahead. Study the seasons. Move ahead and start your own success story.
