Do you ever think about how the three servants felt in the Parable of the Talents? One guy is given five, the second, two, and the third, one. [Read the whole parable here.] Do you think they compared? Measured themselves up against each other? Judged and speculated? Traded them like Pokemon cards?
The Bible doesn’t say, so we don’t know. All we do know is that were given talents based on their own abilities. That the first two servants went off and invested them and the third servant hid his away, only to lose his talent and to be cast into the darkness.
Do you ever think about the talents you have been given based on your abilities? Do you ever judge and compare and even wish you could make a trade?
Me too.
Do you ever feel like you just aren’t sure what you’re supposed to do? With your talents? For the kingdom of God?
Me too.
Do you ever feel like you’re the servant who got the one talent and you’re not even sure what to do with it, so you just hide it away and hope no one notices?
Me too.
Do you ever feel helpless amid all that’s going on in the world, and know that you’re supposed to do something only you don’t know what and you don’t know where?
Me too.
In my own story, I have been blessed and humbled by how God has shown me some of the talents and abilities He has given me and how I can use them to further His kingdom. How the things I care about matter to Him and how I can uplift and encourage the body of believers.
My talents, even if today I’m just certain I’m the servant who only got one, are no small thing.
My piece of the puzzle may look and feel small all on its own, but it’s necessary to complete the masterpiece.
So I use my gifts to talk about marriage and families, to uplift and to walk with my sisters in Christ on their journeys as I continue to learn on my own journey, and to encourage pastors and missionaries . My sphere of influence may only be one or two talents large, but it’s not less-than someone else’s. It’s just different.
A month ago, there was a blog post that went super-viral (including an interview on Good Morning America) about not wearing leggings. This post has been shared over 105 thousand times and was featured on the Huffington Post. Christian men and women are applauding that approach and comments on modesty and its relevance in our culture.
Having never thought about it just that way before, this post was thought-provoking in my own decision to no longer wear yoga pants out in public. And I’m sure I’m not the only one.
And in September, when Dr. Kent Brantley was on Dateline after having survived Ebola, I watched every second. I was amazed at his story and how he uses it to bring glory to God.
That Sunday in church, a 10 year old boy in the congregation submitted a prayer request for the orphans of Ebola. And I cried for the orphans. And thought how terrible it would be for a child to not have snuggles.
Yesterday, I read a blog post calling Christians to be about more than just the every day; the things we can see. Especially when there are so many terrible things going on in the world – ISIS, abortion, Sudanese refugees, and more.
I can see this blogger’s point. In her words “There are far weightier matters at stake than leggings or the “war” on Christmas.”
And I can see how easy it is to jump into one of these and “do your Christian duty” and then move on with your day. “I’ve done my part by talking about it, sharing it on facebook, and texting with a friend.”
But I guess I just don’t see this as an either/or situation.
As a Christian, as a member of the body of Christ, we all have a part to play. We can’t all be shoulders or ankles or elbows or hang nails. Every one has their own specific role and talents they have been given to fulfill that role.
For some people, that means sharing facebook posts from Family Life, Focus on the Family, and Moody to their friend lists… being on a book launch team to support a book on biblical intimacy… working in a soup kitchen… financially supporting missionaries… blogging to talk about and do life with people… speaking on past addictions or traumas… becoming a doctor or nurse and serving in hospitals in countries with Ebola… working in an orphanage… and the list literally goes on and on.
Humble Service in the Body of Christ – Romans 12
3 For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. 4 For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; 7 if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; 8 if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.
Volunteering to teach Sunday School is important. If it’s your talent and your calling, it is vital to the body that you do it. If your talent and calling is to talk about dental hygiene, modesty, respect in marriage, or God’s design for intimacy, then doing it is vital to the body, so that all parts can work together.
And doing any of these things is not less-than working with orphans, Ebola patients, or children who have been sold as slaves. It’s all vital to the functioning of the body.
I just don’t think it’s either/or. I can either volunteer at this year’s Vacation Bible School or I can support a refugee family. They aren’t the same or even really on the same plane. They are very different things requiring very different talents and callings. One is not better or more important as a way to feed the sheep. (John 21:15-17)
I think it’s a both/and.
By that I don’t mean that I think you or I or any one else should do everything there is to do all on their own. That’s why I believe Paul used the analogy of the body with all of the parts working together.
But an elbow doesn’t work very well without an arm. And a hip is pretty silly without a leg. And a beard is really only good if there’s a chin.
What I’m saying is working as a doctor with Ebola patients may not be my talent or calling. Not just because I’m not a doctor but because blood makes me woozy. But Ebola is a real problem. It’s a problem that we need to be concerned about. So I can pray. I can send money to medical missions teams who are training people who do have this calling and talent. I can encourage the doctors and nurses and patients through letter writing. I can pray more.
And that’s just one example. Think if we applied that to so many other things – AIDS, abortion, starvation. The list is endless in our fallen world.
It’s just not a matter of whether modesty is a less important issue than human trafficking, because they are interconnected.
It’s really not a matter of what’s more or less important – it’s a heart issue. Are you doing what has been laid on your heart to do? Are you praying for what is affecting your heart and taking up your thoughts? Are you stepping out to financially support people who are doing the things that you are not equipped or called to do?
In the body, we all work together. We all have a stake. As a foot, it’s in my best interest that the eyes and ears work well. I can’t become an eye or an ear but I can pray for them, encourage them, and do my job well so that they may also do their jobs well.
What are your thoughts?
Hey Leah, Thank you so much for your blog! I’ve been following it for a while now and God has really used it to grow me spiritually! God is so cool, I have come across different blogs on using your gifts to glorify God and serve others, and they are totally unrelated blogs! I have gifts, but compare too much to others, sometimes thinking too much of myself or other times thinking too less of myself because of them. So I’ve hidden them. But He is telling me recently to use them, not as a comparison, but to glorify Him and to serve others. All that to say, thank you!