Busy as a Bee

Bible Reading: Colossians 3:16-24

Dathan kept his distance as he watched his father lift the cover from a beehive. “There sure are lots of bees, aren’t there, Dad? And they all look busy.” He grinned. “They’re as busy as bees!”

Dad smiled. “You’re right. Each of the hives has lots of them—thousands, in fact. But there’s always just one queen bee in each hive.”

“What does she do?” asked Dathan. “Rule the others?”

“Well, she’s the mother of the bees,” Dad said, “and you know how busy mothers are. But all the other bees have a particular job to do too. The forager bees collect the food. The guard bees protect the hive from intruders. There are water collectors who regulate the humidity and plasterers who repair the hives. The scout bees alert the others of opportunities and dangers in the outside world, and there are undertakers that remove dead bees from the hive.”

“Wow!” said Dathan. “I never knew that.”

“They’re like a family,” said Dad. “In a well-run family, each person has special duties. Everyone needs to do their job to keep things running smoothly for the good of the hive.” He glanced at Dathan. “It works that way in human families too.”

Dathan dug his foot into the ground. “You’re talking about how I got in trouble for going to the park when I was supposed to be mowing the lawn, aren’t you?”

Dad nodded. “I know it’s not easy to accept responsibility and do your work when you’d rather be doing something else. That’s why the Bible reminds us that we’re not working for ourselves—we’re working for Jesus. Because we trust in Him, we’re part of His family, and He uses the work we do to benefit others—even tasks that don’t seem all that important to us.”

Dathan looked at the buzzing bees. “He uses our work to help the

whole hive!”

“Exactly,” Dad said. “And He uses it to help us too. Teaching us to accept responsibility and do our tasks when we should helps prepare us for things He wants us to do in the future.” Dad rumpled Dathan’s hair. “Can I count on you to be responsible the next time you’re given a task?”

Dathan grinned. “I’ll be as busy as a bee!” – Helen C. Eshleman

How About You?

Do you accept responsibility when you’re given a task? Or do you complain and put it off for as long as you can? If you trust in Jesus, you’re part of His family, and He uses the work you do to show others His love—even things that seem small or tedious. Trust Him to help you learn to do your work willingly. He’ll use it for the good of the whole hive of bee-lievers!

Today’s Key Verse: Ephesians 2:10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works. (NIV)

Today’s Key Thought:

Accept responsibility