Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise!  It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest. (Proverbs 6:6-8)

I believe that the Bible strongly demonstrates a dynamic in which "Every member is a minister."  That is, the work of the Church does not rest solely in the hands of a few powerful, well-trained, and/or specially-qualified individuals; instead, it's an exercise in community.  Even those who may prefer a more hierarchical style of church governance (say, Roman Catholics or Episcopalians) still inevitably realize that the life of faith just doesn't work unless everyone is pitching in.  It's a group effort, a common quest.

This is observable fact in many arenas of our existence:  in politics, in war, in science, in religion, in nature -- the strongest organisims (or groups / societies of organisms) are the ones who can operate in coordinated community.  When every member of the community is invested, productivity is incredible.  Hierarchical leadership is not necessary, or leadership can be quickly and easily replaced when needed.

Ants are awesome in this regard.

I suppose you could make the same case for swarms of bees or schools of fish -- but I like colonies of ants best and think that they serve as the best point of comparison for humans because they're more ordinary.  That is, they can't fly, they can't breathe underwater, they're just normal earth-dwelling creatures like us.  As an individual, an ant is really not so spectacular.  But as a colony, ants are amazing.  They work together, build homes together, gather food together, fend off enemies together -- and they manage to do this all over the world.  Not just surviving wherever they go, but thriving!  An entire society within the shell of an acorn -- or displacing 40 tons of soil!  And all without any particular commander, overseer, or ruler...

Suffice to say:  We have a lot to learn from ants.  As individuals, as families, as churches, and as societies, we'd do well to consider their ways.  To me, one of the most significant lessons from the ants is the need for everyone within a community to invest in the life of the community and take ownership for its future.  Too often, we wait for someone to tell us what to do.  We play passive or (even worse) passive-aggressive.  We sit back and let others do the work because it's easier and "safer" that way (so we don't get criticized or blamed if something goes wrong).  And to make matters worse, while we're sitting back we're often griping about the President, or the Pastor, or the Boss.  We're sitting on our keisters and taking pot-shots at the "responsible parties" because we're sluggards.  We're lazy!

But here's one of the challenges from the ant community:  What could we really accomplish if we could all remain active?  What if we could genuinely work with others in community?  We wouldn't have to be super-stars (in fact, we couldn't afford to be super-stars).  We would just have to be faithful... And if a colony of ants can build an ingenious, immense, underground village out of dirt and leaves and garbage pits -- well, it's incredible to think what could happen on the family level, or church level, or society level...