đ”Aesop’s Fables Month: The Ant and the Dove đđïž
Most of us grew up hearing the timeless proverb: âOne good turn deserves another.â In Aesopâs classic telling, that truth plays out between two creatures who couldnât be further apart in statureâa delicate dove perched high in the branches and a tiny ant swept away in the rapids below.
Modern culture often looks at this circle of kindness and mislabels it as âkarma.â But karma, at its root, is a cold, transactional ledger. It waits for cosmic payback, score-settling, and universal retribution. Worse, these paybacks are often weaponized by our own desire to see someone âget whatâs coming to them,â and then paybacks are paid back, and suddenly there’s a full-blown war.
So, nope, karma is not the answer. The Golden Rule calls us to something radically different: uncalculated grace, active mercy, and stepping into the gap before harm can fallâwhat people today often label as pay it forward.
The Classic Fable RetoldâIn 4 Parts
Part 1: Help!
A thirsty little ant crawled down to the edge of a rushing woodland stream to drink. Reaching too far into the swift current, his footing slipped, and he was violently tossed into the foaming rapids. Thrashing his tiny legs against the swirling whirlpool, he was entirely powerless to save himself from drowning.
Part 2: Grace
High above on an overhanging branch, a gentle white dove looked down with pity. She didn’t calculate what an insect could ever do for her in return. Plucking a broad leaf from the bough with her beak, she dropped it straight into the churning foam beside the ant. With his last bit of strength, the drenched little traveler scrambled aboard, finding safe harbor upon an unearned raft.
Part 3: Danger
Soon after, a rustic birdcatcher crept stealthily through the ferns. Spotting the peaceful dove resting quietly in the canopy, he unrolled his snare net. Raising his mesh into the air, he prepared to cast it over the unsuspecting bird, whose life hung by a thread.
Part 4: Salvation!
Observing the fowler’s wicked aim, the ant did not stand by and let “fate” take its course. Scurrying across the forest floor, he sank his sharp mandibles deep into the hunterâs bare ankle! The birdcatcher cried out in sudden agony, hopping on one foot and dropping his heavy net into the dirt. Now free, the dove spread her wings and took flight into the open skyârescued by the very life she had spared.
~ ~ ~
The Golden Rule vs. The Trap of Karma
When Jesus taught the Golden Rule, He inverted the worldâs natural instinct to settle scores:
âAnd just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.â
â Luke 6:31
Karma is passive and retrospective; it looks backward at a debt and waits for punishment. The Golden Rule is active and forward-looking; it initiates love without waiting for a guarantee of return. The dove didn’t drop the leaf because the ant was worthy, and the ant didn’t bite the heel out of spite for the hunterâit acted out of protective gratitude for the dove.
When we treat life like a karmic ledger, we secretly hope for revenge dressed up as justice. But when we walk in the rhythm of the Kingdom, we extend grace downward to those who cannot repay us, and we stand up to protect others when danger creeps close. May we be quick with the leaf when someone is drowning, and bold with our small strength when someone we love is about to be snared.
âTherefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.â
â Galatians 6:10
~ ~ ~
He Set Me Free
Just like that dove soaring into the open sky the moment the hunter’s snare hit the dirt, true salvation breaks the bonds that were meant to cage and destroy us. Celebrate that sweet deliverance with this timeless classic complete with adorable clips from Pinocchio and Jiminy Cricket:
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ClichĂ© Month: When the Cat’s Away, the Mice Will Play đââŹđ
We Love Our Black “Galaxy” Kitty
In honor of National Black Cat Appreciation Day, I couldnât help but think about how our sleek, shadowed feline companions get a bad reputationâmostly as symbols of superstition. But if you’ve ever known a black cat, especially a tuxedo cat, you know how not-scary they actually are.
Currently, we have a black feral who won’t come in the house, won’t sit on our laps, and gets a bit haughty if she sees us feed another neighborhood cat, but she lives here most of the time. We call her Galaxy because of the white cluster of fur on her chest, sort of like a spinning space galaxy. She likes to be scritched, and sometimes, she will even jump up on the front porch glider and sit close (but not too close) while “making biscuits” in the air. We feel a strong victory when we get her to enjoy our company like that.
But When The Cat’s Away…
The core sentiment of this clichĂ© originated in medieval Latin: “Dum felis dormit, mus gaudet et exsilit antro” (“When the cat sleeps, the mouse leaves its hole, rejoicing”). By the early 14th century, the French had framed it as “Ou chat na rat regne” (“Where there is no cat, the rat is king”), emphasizing the immediate shift in control. In 1599, William Shakespeare referenced the concept in Henry V, pointing out that an unguarded territory invites chaos by “playing the mouse in absence of the cat.”
The common denominator is, of course, that the mouse is very happy to have the house (or castle) all to itself. And after our last indoor cat left to cross the rainbow bridge in January of 2023, we experienced exactly what happens when you have no cats and a closed storage room with a window. (Actually, we still don’t know where they got in.)
After that experience, I’ve thought very strongly about getting another indoor cat to dissuade any new critters from moving in during the cold winter, but thankfully, we haven’t seen evidence of them for awhile.
What Kinds of People Play Cat and Mouse Games?
Real character isn’t proven when authority is standing in the room taking notes; it’s proven in the unchecked moments when nobody is looking over our shoulder. What we are on the inside will eventually come out in our words and our behaviors. Scripture says…
Luke 6:45 BSB
[45] The good man brings good things out of the good treasure of his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil treasure of his heart. For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.
https://bible.com/bible/3034/luk.6.45.BSB
Mice may be small, but they make big choices to invade, chew, nest, and poop (yuck) when they think they can get away with it. Some people also make big choices in the abundance of little things they do without caring how they affect the big picture. I think it’s actually that big-picture care that speaks most about the integrity of a person.
I found so many quotes about integrity and character, that I could never share them all with you. But here are a few I like:
“Character is built by thousands of small choices.”
“Reputation is what men and women think of us; character is what God and angels know of us.” â Thomas Paine
“Our character is what we do when we think no one is looking.” â H. Jackson Brown Jr.
The Apostle Paul spoke of character to the Ephesian slaves (working class) in how they should obey their bosses…
Ephesians 6:6-7 BSB
[6] And do this not only to please them while they are watching, but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart.
[7] Serve with good will, as to the Lord and not to men,
https://bible.com/bible/3034/eph.6.6-7.BSB
But God Even Loves the Mice
My annual Bible study has had me in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah this week, and I’ve been amazed at the progression of the people as they learn about God’s law and about His grace. They’ve been in bondage due to sin and ignorance, so someone finds the Torah and begins reading it to the people. Many are moved to begin obeying it. This is followed by testimony of all the ways the people have abandoned The Lord and how, when things went bad, they would come back to Him. And what did He do? Over and over again, He forgave them and provided ways for them to come back into His holy presence.
There were some that just refused to be changed, whether by the law or by grace, and they made the prophet so angry that he beat them. But that’s an effect a person with no integrity can have on a person with integrity. They can push your buttons until you feel like pulling your hair out, or doing like the prophet and pulling out their hair. And when their lack of caring causes them to reject The Almighty, it feels even worse.
In case you want to see what The Bible Project says about these 2 Bible books, here’s their message on that subject:
But the goal of personal and spiritual growth is self-governance: deciding for and in ourselves that we WANT to do the right thing simply because it IS the right thing. We move beyond the fear of whether the “cat” is home or away, and we treat every moment as if we want to make the “cat” happy and proud. And we grasp the reality that God knows our (mouse) form and yet He still loves and forgives us. Now that’s a reason to get excited that we have freedom and time to play.
Psalm 103:14 BSB
[14] For He knows our frame; He is mindful that we are dust.
https://bible.com/bible/3034/psa.103.14.BSB
I’ll wrap up with these encouraging words from Hebrews…
Hebrews 4:14-16 BSB
[14] Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we profess. [15] For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who was tempted in every way that we are, yet was without sin. [16] Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
https://bible.com/bible/3034/heb.4.14-16.BSB
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đ”Proverbs 21: When God Weighs Hearts
Do you suppose that most people who misbehave think they are doing anything wrong? It seems to me that even those who know they are doing something evil (like taking revenge on someone) only do so because they somehow feel justified. Proverbs Chapter 21 begins with talking about the King’s heart being in God’s hands and following His direction. Then it goes to other men and says…
Proverbs 21:2 WEBUS
[2] Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but Yahweh weighs the hearts.
https://bible.com/bible/206/pro.21.2.WEBUS
The juxtaposition of the two types makes sense because the wise king who’s writing most of these proverbial instructions is trying to lead people by God’s direction. Even if he later fails and begins his own ways of doing right in his eyes instead of God’s, it doesn’t change the wisdom that real leadership works best when it’s in God’s hands. And it doesn’t change the wisdom that God weighs the heart and motives underlying the thoughts and behaviors.
But because of Calvary, we now know that God doesn’t stop with weighing hearts. He doesn’t see a pain-hardened heart with a jagged rock in the middle of it and just give up and throw it away. Instead, He offers the one suffering from a heavy heart an opportunity to let Him remake it into a tender heart of flesh.
Until putting this post together, I’d been reading all those verses showing the differences between righteous people and fools with a bit of judgment toward those who make foolish decisions and then pay foolish prices. It may be how it’s written, but I want to take this moment to look at every one of those differently; followed by a but it doesn’t have to stay this way thought process. Because, with the mercy and grace found in the holy blood of Jesus Christ shed at Calvary for you and me, we are no longer destined to be stuck in unrighteousness. We don’t have to be a king to put our hearts in the capable hands of The King of Kings and let Him direct us like He directs the rivers and oceans.
Verse 7 tells us…
Proverbs 21:7 WEBUS
[7] The violence of the wicked will drive them away, because they refuse to do what is right.
https://bible.com/bible/206/pro.21.7.WEBUS
So we know they refuse to do right because they already think they are doing right. And when being driven away causes the pain of rejection, the stone in the heart gets a little harder and sharper, and the person makes even more wrong decisions that bring even more rejection. It becomes a cycle that threatens to trap the heart in heaviness forever. But God looks deeper than others can see, or we can see about ourselves. We may feel burdened by the idea of God weighing our hearts when He may just be checking what needs to be done to fix things. Using the pottery metaphor, He’s finding out how much water to add to make the clay pliable again and soften it enough to pull the rock away like in the image above.
The Psalmist says…
Psalms 51:10 WEBUS
[10] Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a right spirit within me.
https://bible.com/bible/206/psa.51.10.WEBUS
And we can sing with the Maranatha singers, Change My Heart, Oh God and know that He will do it.
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