Articles

Ants: God's Amazing Creatures

By Wayne Jackson

One of the most interesting insects in the world is the tiny ant. There are more than 10,000 different types of ants. Some of them live in underground tunnels, some build mounds out of dirt, and others live in dead trees. Ants are called "social insects," because they live in groups and help one another in different ways.

God has made ants with some very special abilities. For example, one type of ant, called the "parasol" ant, is a farmer. He raises a fungus garden. He plants, fertilizes, weeds, and harvests his own crop! Another kind of ant is like a dairy farmer. He keeps little "cows" called aphids (a small insect). In the winter, these ants carry aphids into their nests and care for them. In the spring, the aphids are placed on plants, where they feed. When ants rub the bodies of the aphids a sweet liquid comes out, which the ants drink.

Ants have a wonderful sense of direction. They can travel great distances from their homes and still find their way back. Some scientific experiments have shown that they seem to direct their course by the light of the Sun and Moon.

In the Bible's book of Proverbs, Solomon (a great and wise king of Israel) wrote that the ant "gathers her food in the harvest" (Proverbs 6:8). For many years this was thought to be a mistake in the Bible. Now, however, we know that some ants really do harvest their food. They cut seeds off of certain plants and keep them underground in storehouses.

The ant has been a serious problem for those who believe in evolution. Many ants have been found in hardened tree sap. According to the guesses of evolutionists (which are not correct), these ants lived millions of years ago. And yet, these preserved ants are just like those that live today! If evolution really happened, why didn't ants change? This shows that there is something very wrong with the idea of evolution.

Yes, we can learn many things from ants. We learn that they have wonderful abilities which could have been given only by God. We discover that they work hard to provide for their families. We see that they help one another in their daily lives. Surely we can thank God for these creatures, and the lessons they teach us.

http://www.discoverymagazine.com/articles/d1997/d9701a.htm