1. Small but very wise Proverbs 30:24
Graeme Sterne
2006

2. Four things on earth are small but extremely wise
Ants
Coneys - a small herbivorous animal (Hyrax Syriacus)
Locusts
Lizards

3. Ants
Ants have little strength
but store up food in the summer

4. Coneys
Coneys have little power
but make their homes in the crags

5. Locusts
Locusts have no king
but advance in ranks

6. Lizards Lizards can be caught in your hand but they find their way
into king’s palaces

7. What is so ‘wise’ about these animals?
Ants – have little strength
Tell them ants, bothersome ants
Their wars are meaningless
Fly away queen! Your God is not the creator I is, Billy, sadistic boy with a magnifying glass…
by T. Abel

8. Imagine you are an ant… So small So vulnerable
So weak compared to other animals
So insignificant

9. What could you do???
The ant is smart because it stores up food in the summer
Instead of saying “I am so weak. I am so small.” The ants work hard, they work together and they make provision for the winter when they have a chance.
What is the lesson for us?

10. And what if you were a coney - a small herbivorous animal ?
So powerless
So vulnerable to predators
No defense weapons
Just a good meal for an eagle or a fox

11. What could you do?
The coney is wise because it makes its home way up in the crags
A difficult place for predators to get to
A place where the weak can dictate the terms - hiding places, eating places, inaccessible

12. What if you were a locust?
No ‘king’ – leader
No organiser
No protector
No great individual strength

13. What would you do?
Advance in ranks!!!

14. What if you were a lizard?
So small they are easy to catch

15. What would you do? They get into kings’ palaces
Slip in unnoticed, camouflaged in the surroundings
Find ways - using shadows and cracks in the walls
Move quickly and silently
What can we learn from this?

16. What can we learn from each of these animals?
They do not use their weakness as an excuse
They make the most of what they do have
They are solution orientated
They achieve their goals despite weakness

17. Some weaknesses we hide behind
Need more training
Lack of authority
Don’t have time
Not very good at it
Might fail
They should …
Too small
Not ready yet
Can’t be done
Haven’t done that before

18. Some opportunities at ACPC
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Prayer
Sunday services organiser
Our ACPC Christmas programme
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Cleaning roster
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Outreach into YWCA
Leaders for Parish Council
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