Tuesday; August 17

Last Sunday morning I heard a really good sermon based on the Parable of the Talents from Matthew 25. The preacher made several good points, but one of the ones that really stuck with me was something from verse 25. After visiting with the servants who had utilized the talents they had been given, the master addressed the one who didn’t. Interestingly, when confronted about his decision, the slave observed, “And I was afraid, and went away and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what is yours.” (Matthew 25:25). We might be surprised that the boss reacted so harshly in this response – I mean after all, the master didn’t “lose” any money – but, what seemed to upset the master was unfulfilled potential. He wasn’t upset that the servant took a risk or lost the talent, he was mad because the man didn’t even try. The servant tried to blame his inactivity on fear of failing, but the master honed-in on his lack of effort.

Most of us realize the moral of this story is that we have all been blessed with abilities – what are we doing with them. The bottom line isn’t that we have different talents, it is that we all have the same opportunity to put them to use! Are we doing it? God’s grace is a special gift available to us all, but mercy doesn’t mean we are exempted from living meaningful lives.

What talents have we been given? How are we using them?

Think About It!

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