Where would you like to be in six months or a year? And how will you get there? Just as the ant picks up one grain of sand and moves it, then the next one, then the next one—and because of its long obedience in the same direction builds a city—one year from now, we will all be different. We don’t get to stay the same, but we do get a choice in how we will have changed, whether it’s for the better or not.

In your spiritual lives, too, as you “play the movie forward,” where do you want to be in a year’s time? If you want to be growing in your faith, closer to God and bold in your prayers, then day by day follow the example of the little ant and set your face in that direction by spending time in God’s Word and in worship and prayer every day.

Everything that has value is worth intentional, daily commitment and obedience. I know that it’s not easy, but just take the first step, then the next and the next, and before you know it you’ll be much further down the road. Understand it can take time. All good things do. But that’s okay, because the journey is worth it.

Of course one can eat soup in the summer, but there's a special delight in pulling up to a steaming bowl of goodness when it's cold outside. While chili and stew recipes abound this time of year, we've got a perennial favorite, Modern Mom’s Chicken Noodle Soup. How would a mother cure her family’s ills without it? And since this recipe is from The Complete 15-Minute Gourmet, you can make it in 15 minutes using fresh ingredients.  See the scrumptious soup recipe here.