Our talents

A friend of mine was complaining to me the other day about not having any talent.  She thought of herself as a stupid, ugly, fat loser, with nothing to offer the world, nothing to offer God.  But that's not what I see in her.  I see someone who is a brilliant photographer, gifted poet, and beautiful person.  It's true that she doesn't have the top grades in her class; but she has been gifted with other talents and abilities, things that people like myself could only dream about.

Somehow, our society has convinced us that if we don't have a certain set of talents, then we don't have any talent at all.  If we don't get good grades, aren't considered beautiful by the standards of the world, and would rather spend Friday night with a book than with a boyfriend, then there is something wrong with us, we are not capable of contributing to God's kingdom as equally as others may be.

What's wrong with that picture?  Well, the easy answer is that it's just plain not true.  God is the one who has given us our talents, skills, attributes, and passions.  How could we say that we serve a just God, if He punishes us for what He has given us - or a lack thereof?

No, lack of talent doesn't displease God.  In fact, the truth is that no one has a complete lack of talent - we have all been given gifts, something with which we can serve the Master and bring glory to His kingdom.  So what is it that God truly dislikes?  He dislikes laziness.  He dislikes a fear of failing which cripples activity.  He dislikes blaming our failures on the fact that we were not given enough to start with.  "For to everyone who has, more shall be given," He says in His word.  We have all been given a gift.  It is our choice to decide what we will do with it.  We can choose to use it, to further His kingdom...or we can choose to squander it, to complain about what we don't have instead of being grateful for what we do have.

In the end, lack of talent isn't what displeases God.  It's a lack of action with the talent that you do have that truly saddens Him.

Matthew 25:14-30

14 “For it is just like a man about to go on a journey, who called his own slaves and entrusted his possessions to them. 15 To one he gave five talents, to another, two, and to another, one, each according to his own ability; and he went on his journey. 16 Immediately the one who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and gained five more talents. 17 In the same manner the one who had received the two talents gained two more.18 But he who received the one talent went away, and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. 

19 “Now after a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. 20 The one who had received the five talents came up and brought five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you entrusted five talents to me. See, I have gained five more talents.’ 21His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ 

22 “Also the one who had received the two talents came up and said, ‘Master, you entrusted two talents to me. See, I have gained two more talents.’ 23 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ 

24 “And the one also who had received the one talent came up and said, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow and gathering where you scattered no seed. 25 And I was afraid, and went away and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what is yours.’ 

26 “But his master answered and said to him, ‘You wicked, lazy slave, you knew that I reap where I did not sow and gather where I scattered no seed. 27 Then you ought to have put my money in the bank, and on my arrival I would have received my money back with interest. 28 Therefore take away the talent from him, and give it to the one who has the ten talents.’ 

29 “For to everyone who has, more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away. 30 Throw out the worthless slave into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Hospitality

I had dinner tonight with one of the most incredible families that I've ever met.  They are Americans, but lived as missionaries in Asia for 20 years - 12 years in South Korea, and 8 years in China.  We had a mutual friend who got us connected when she learned that I was heading to South Korea.  So last week, I got a call from them, inviting my entire family to dinner.  So we all went to a complete stranger's house for the evening.  And I was absolutely blown away by their hospitality and love for people.

Aside from one of the best meals I've ever had, they were full of stories and suggestions for living in Korea.  They gave me books, and dictionaries, and food, and contacts information of friends in Korea, and even a suitcase when they found out that mine was looking for a retirement home.  And apologized that they could not do more.  I left completely humbled and absolutely blown away by their love for others.  And they didn't even know us!!

The most astounding thing to me, however, is that she has been fighting brain cancer for years.  They came back from Asia after they found the second tumor.  But she never complains about it; never even mentions it unless someone asks her about it.  She is always looking for ways to serve other people, asking others how they are doing and what she can do to help them.

God has called us to serve others.  And tonight I realized just how far I have to go before I can really say that I do just that.  If I have even just a little cold, I don't want to help anyone else - I want to stay in bed and nurse my sickness.  But then this woman with brain cancer spends the entire evening cooking for and talking with and serving and entertaining six strangers.

South Korea is a very giving society - the way she put it tonight, "it's impossible to outgive Koreans."  So I pray that in this next year, God will teach me to be a little more like South Koreans.  I pray that I will learn to think of others more and of myself less.  I pray that I will put their needs and desires ahead of my own, and that God would grow and stretch and refine me, so that every day I will be a little more like Him.

Matthew 25:34-40

  ³⁴ “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. ³⁵ For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, ³⁶ I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
   ³⁷ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸ When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? ³⁹ When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
   ⁴⁰ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

Keep watch

I saw part of a wedding party yesterday.  And it got me thinking about how much effort and hope we put into weddings.  I'm in the middle of the biggest wedding season of the year, at a time in my life that is when most people get married.  EVERYONE is getting married right now.  Not a month goes by that another one of my friends ties the knot, and it's often more than one.

But weddings aren't the magic elixir of happiness.  They won't cure all of your problems.  They won't guarantee a perfect life.  There is only 1 wedding that can truly make you happy, and that's the wedding as the bridegroom of Christ.

But just like we would never have our own wedding here on Earth without planning it first, God expects us to put some preparation and effort into the wedding with Christ.  We cannot just sit around and wait for Jesus to come back, hoping that we'll be ready when He does.  "Keep watch," He says, "because we do not know the day or the hour of His return."  We can't just sit around and wait for life to happen, wait for opportunities to experience new things and serve others to just happen.  We have to take life by the horns.  We have to choose to look for them.  I pray that when the Lord comes back, I will not be caught unawares.  I want to be ready. 

Matthew 25:1-13

 ¹ “At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. ² Five of them were foolish and five were wise. ³ The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. ⁴ The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. ⁵ The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
   ⁶ “At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’
   ⁷ “Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. ⁸ The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’
   ⁹ “‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’
   ¹⁰ “But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.
   ¹¹ “Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’
   ¹² “But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’
   ¹³ “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.

A test you can't cram for

School is almost out for the summer, and even for me, having been finished for 3 weeks already, the memories of projects and tests and final assignments rings fresh in my mind.  Life is full of tests, and we are expected to complete them nearly every day of our lives.

But Christ has called us to a different kind of test.  In Matthew 25, Jesus tells a parable about the sheep and the goats.  On Judgement day, he will separate all of the peoples of the earth into sheep and goats.  The sheep, who had taken care of Jesus by taking care of those around them, will be welcomed into Heaven, while the goats, who had ignored Jesus because they ignored the people around them, will be sent to eternal death.  Kind of a harsh test, isn't it?  It's rather scary to me to think that every needy person I meet could actually be a test of my love for Jesus.  That's not a test that you can cram for, is it?

But, luckily for us, God doesn't give us tests without a study guide.  His Word is our guide, a lamp to our feet and a light to our path.  The more we seek Him, the more His love for others will be infused into our hearts and minds.  With God on our side, any test that we encounter will be a cinch.

Matthew 25:31-46

    ³¹ “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. ³² All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. ³³ He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
   ³⁴ “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. ³⁵ For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, ³⁶ I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
   ³⁷ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸ When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? ³⁹ When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
   ⁴⁰ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
   ⁴¹ “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. ⁴² For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, ⁴³ I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
   ⁴⁴ “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’
   ⁴⁵ “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’
   ⁴⁶ “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”