Lessons from animals

Ever ask yourself, “Why in the world did I do that? I KNOW better!” That’s a good question. You have your conscience, your past experience, the revealed Word of God, and the advice of wise Christian friends available. Why not use them?

• Proverbs 1:17-19 HCSB It is foolish to spread a net where any bird can see it, 18 but they set an ambush to kill themselves; they attack their own lives. 19 Such are the paths of all who pursue gain dishonestly; it takes the lives of those who profit from it.

A bow hunter knows how important a silent bow is. A deer’s reflexes are so quick that if it hears the sound of your release it can leap out of the way before your arrow even gets there! That’s how fast God wants us to get out of debt. That’s how nervous we should be about it.

• Proverbs 6:1-5 HCSB My son, if you have put up security for your neighbor or entered into an agreement with a stranger, 2 you have been trapped by the words of your lips--ensnared by the words of your mouth. 3 Do this, then, my son, and free yourself, for you have put yourself in your neighbor's power: Go, humble yourself, and plead with your neighbor. 4 Don't give sleep to your eyes or slumber to your eyelids. 5 Escape like a gazelle from a hunter, like a bird from a fowler's trap.

There are spiders in Africa that are big enough to hunt birds. They will sit on a branch with a few of their legs held up, their camouflage making them look like a part of the tree. The unwitting bird will alight next to the predator only to have a stinger full of paralyzing poison jabbed into it. Sin, especially sensuous sin, never looks menacing. It is always attractive. What chance would the devil have of seducing you with an ugly cantankerous person? Be wary.

• Proverbs 7:21-23 HCSB She seduces him with her persistent pleading; she lures with her flattering talk. 22 He follows her impulsively like an ox going to the slaughter, like a deer bounding toward a trap 23 until an arrow pierces its liver, like a bird darting into a snare--he doesn't know it will cost him his life.

How useless to have all that shining beauty with so much ugly uselessness inside! Devote as much care to your insides as your outside.

• Proverbs 11:22 HCSB A beautiful woman who rejects good sense is like a gold ring in a pig's snout.

The welfare of our animals should be of primary concern to us. We should not only think of what makes them useful to us, but also what concerns them.

• Proverbs 12:10 HCSB A righteous man cares about his animal's health, but even the merciful acts of the wicked are cruel.

Horses are so sleek, so powerful, so irresistible in their charges. But even a horse stumbles. A horse can come unshod or can spook at the strangest things. So it is with our human planning. You just never know what will go wrong. Murphy shows up at the most inopportune times. Go ahead and plan – it’s necessary – but keep in mind that it’s ultimately up to the Lord.

• Proverbs 21:31 HCSB A horse is prepared for the day of battle, but victory comes from the LORD.

Take some time today and try to catch a bird by hand. Go ahead, sneak up on one and catch it in your hands. Ridiculous? A waste of time? Certainly. About as much a waste as trying to get rich. Just do your work and if the wealth comes too, great.

• Proverbs 23:4-5 HCSB Don't wear yourself out to get rich; stop giving your attention to it. 5 As soon as your eyes fly to it, it disappears, for it makes wings for itself and flies like an eagle to the sky.

Some may think it cruel to break a horse with a whip or to force a donkey to obey your will with a bridle. But try to get them to do anything without those tools! A fool is so recalcitrant that it seems at times that the only recourse is a stick!

• Proverbs 26:3 HCSB A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the backs of fools.

It’s just as disgusting to see a person continually falling for the same foolishness as it is to see a dog eat its own vomit.

• Proverbs 26:11 HCSB As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his foolishness.

Ever seen (or heard) a dog crunch a big bone? Imagine that bone being your hand! It makes you rethink the whole concept of dog-ear yanking! But you’re just as likely to get hurt sticking your nose into someone else’s argument.

• Proverbs 26:17 HCSB A passerby who meddles in a quarrel that's not his is like one who grabs a dog by the ears.

Back in biblical days, your flock was your bank account, your pantry and your tool shed all wrapped in one. In our materialistically minded world we tend to want to hurry to the point where we get to the enjoyment of the fruit of our labors: the tvs, microwaves, boats, houses and cars. But God says we need to make sure that we keep our priorities straight. We need to keep reinvesting in those things He has given us that bring the wealth.

• Proverbs 27:23-27 HCSB Know well the condition of your flock, and pay attention to your herds, 24 for wealth is not forever; not even a crown lasts for all time. 25 When hay is removed and new growth appears and the grain from the hills is gathered in, 26 lambs will provide your clothing, and goats, the price of a field; 27 there will be enough goat's milk for your food--food for your household and nourishment for your servants.

Know when you are well-off. Don’t hop from thing to thing like a bird hopping from branch to branch. Be secure in your knowledge. Be satisfied with whatever condition God has given you. Work on it to do it the best you can but don’t be constantly seeking out new things without finishing what you are presently doing. Otherwise you’ll never be “home”.

• Proverbs 27:8 HCSB A man wandering from his home is like a bird wandering from its nest.

Even small, insignificant things, like you and me, can have great influence in the lives of people we met. We always influence, sometimes for good, sometimes for evil, but we always influence. The smallest of God’s animals and insects can do the seemingly impossible. We should at least try to do as much.

• Proverbs 30:24-28 HCSB Four things on earth are small, yet they are extremely wise: 25 the ants are not a strong people, yet they store up their food in the summer; 26 hyraxes are not a mighty people, yet they make their homes in the cliffs; 27 locusts have no king, yet all of them march in ranks; 28 a lizard can be caught in your hands, yet it lives in kings' palaces.