When I was growing up in New Jersey, we lived in an area where there was a ton of sand all around. I love sand today because it is a great challenge riding a motorcycle in it. But back then it was the penchant for ants (not my Mother’s Sister kind) to use the sandy soil to build their network of tunnels and hills that got my attention. They at times were littered across our yard. Looked like a volcanic surface at times with spouts protruding up from the ground every couple of feet. It attracted me so much that one of the things I loved to do was to create an ant colony inside a clear jar so that I could watch them do their work.
Now this was what I found was the interesting part. If I poured sand into the jar and THEN added random ants…NOTHING WOULD HAPPEN. Would just have these ants wandering aimlessly across and throughout the sand in the jar. Ah…but if I took a garden shovel and scooped up the entire ant hill, miracles would occur. I would soon see an intricate network of tunnels connecting to each other in a complex maze of activity.
And here is the other amazing part. I could scoop up a few separate hills then put them into the same jar. And you know what? They all worked together to create the same maze of tunnels in the jar. I did not see a single sign in the jar reading, “Keep out. Tunnel trespassers will be prosecuted”. Nope. They merely cooperated to create something more.
When Elise and I got married, our wedding song was “One Bread, One Body” by John Foley. The song comes from verses in the books of Romans, Galatians, 1 Corinthians and a early Christian document called the Didache. The song talks about their being Gentiles and Jews, Women or Men. Servant or Free. We are many. But in the end we are one cup of blessing in the Lord.
In today’s reading from Ephesians Paul talks about us being many parts. There are several ministries. Apostles, disciples, preachers, pastors, evangelists. All with varied gifts but all working for one goal. Bringing the Kingdom to all using whatever talents God has given them. It can be summed up in this line that I have been using recently:
“God does not call the equipped but equips the called”
Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah. All believed they were in no way capable of answering God’s call because they were slow in speech, or too young, or not smart enough. But God never leaves us unprepared for what He calls us to do. The key is who you take direction from.
Why did those ants from the ant hill do so well while the randomly collected ones seemingly fail? The answer lies in the activity of the queen ant. The queen will mate and determine the best location to begin the colony. She sits at the center of a large matrix of tunnels and cells beneath the visible mound at the surface. In addition to laying eggs, the queen emits pheromones (a type of communication chemical) that serves to direct the activity of the other ants in the colony. Each grouping of ants know their roles. The workers are sterile females that take on the jobs of digging, feeding the young or acquiring food for the colony. The drones mate with the queen. All at the direction of the queen.
Our role is to spread the word of the Kingdom. We are directed by Christ. And when we work together, staying in “our lane” (as seems to be the newest fad phrase out there), our task is much more likely to reach fulfillment. Today’s Psalm refrain says “Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord”. And one refrain says, “Jerusalem, built as a city
with compact unity. To it the tribes go up, the tribes of the LORD.”
The tribes, plural, all go up to the house of the Lord…Jerusalem. Separate groups working together in the Lord’s house. Ants in a Colony. Gentile or Jew. Woman or Man. Servant or Free. One Bread. One Body.
