I Want To Be A Good And Faithful Servant

Matthew 25:14-30 (ESV)

The Parable of the Talents

¹⁴ “For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. ¹⁵ To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. ¹⁶ He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. ¹⁷ So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. ¹⁸ But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master's money. ¹⁹ Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. ²⁰ And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here I have made five talents more.’ ²¹ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant.^[c] You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ ²² And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here I have made two talents more.’ ²³ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ ²⁴ He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, ²⁵ so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ ²⁶ But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? ²⁷ Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. ²⁸ So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. ²⁹ For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.³⁰ And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

I am not lazy. I might be extremely distracted, but I am not lazy. In fact, I love life and want to explore the heights and depths and reaches of all that life has to offer. I am also a do-gooding people person. I love people and I want to see community flourish. I’m also pretty good at networking. Even though I have spent a good part of the last decade pouring in to the community, it has not always been centered on God. Unfortunately, I have been very successful in burying his treasure in my busyness. I get distracted by fun very easily. I get caught up in good causes all the time and end up overextending myself. I can keep a very packed schedule. I’m good at using God’s talents to serve myself.

Several months back, I was feeling overwhelmed and disconnected. I had to take a step back from everything and ask myself, “I might seem like a busy servant, but am I really about my Master’s work?” I thought, if Jesus came back tomorrow, would ANY of this matter? I was a part of so many great causes, but what was I really achieving? Reaching my human limit has been the best catalyst in my life. I’m not saying everything was bad, but I did feel lost at times and lacked focus. I’ve since slowed down and re-directed my focus. Some things I do are the very same things on the outside, but the reason is different, so everything is different. It’s still a work in progress, but I feel so much freer and connected to something more than myself.

A master would not have servants without a purpose. He has work to be done and has acquired the help to achieve this. (By acquired, I mean that He sent Jesus to die for us) We who identify as belonging to God know that God has a purpose for us. Whatever it may look like individually; we know that He wants us to worship Him, become more like Him, and grow His Kingdom. We have each been given talents to achieve this. Whether it be our skills, resources, charming personalities, passions, or our placement in the lives of others (ranging from your coworkers to your children to the person sitting in the next booth over); He has already given us all we need to achieve his purpose.

Take a few minutes to ask your Father in heaven. What has God given you to carry out his work? Have you been faithful with these gifts? If you haven’t, what’s keeping you? Fear? Discouragement? Laziness? Distractions? Ask Abba what you can do today to accomplish what He has set out for you to do.

- Natalie