StorytellerSample

If you’ve been around church for any length of time, you’ve probably heard some version of this parable. A rich guy is going on a long trip, and it’s an era before mobile banking apps, so he has to leave some trusted servants in charge of his money. After all, would you like to come back from chillin' in the Bahamas and find yourself suddenly broke? I think not.

Anyway, two of his servants outperform their master’s expectations. They were smart, they invested his money in stocks or a Kickstarter for some world-changing product, and when he came back they were able to give him back twice what he had left them with. I’m not a financial wizard, but that’s a pretty solid rate of return. Then there’s the third servant…the lazy, scared one. He dug a hole in the backyard, buried his master’s money, and went inside to un-pause his video game. The master was less than happy. In fact, he fired this guy on the spot. 

Now, the most clear and literal interpretation of this story is that Jesus is talking to us about handling money. And there is absolutely truth to that. The basic premise is that for all three of these servants, they weren’t dealing with their own money…it was their master’s. For us, we are also not dealing with our own money. Everything we own and every dollar that hits our checking accounts is actually God’s…he just lets us manage it for him. The question then becomes what we’ll do with it. Will we do what God would want to do with HIS money, or will we blow it all on shoes and flaming hot Cheetos for ourselves? Whether you have a steady job, a regular allowance, or are just managing the occasional birthday check from your grandma, every spending decision you make is a spiritual decision…is this what God wants me to do with HIS money?

But I don’t want to just focus on money here, because I think there are layers of meaning wrapped up in this story. Setting your financial situation aside, what else has God entrusted to you? What stuff do you have more than enough of? What abilities do you have? What are you naturally good at? What are you passionate about? How much free time do you have in a week (hint: it’s probably more than you think)? Are you using all of these things the way God would want you to use them? Are you finding ways to help other people in the areas you are gifted? Are you hoarding every second of free time you get, or are you sacrificing some of it to help someone else or serve at church? 

The ultimate point of Jesus’ story is this: your life is not your own. Everything you have has been given to you by God, and he actually cares how you use it. God is the most generous and selfless Being in all of the universe, and you can bet he wants the money, stuff, time and abilities he has given you to be used in a generous way. So, what are you doing with the life and stuff God has given you? What can you give away? Who can you serve? Whose day could you brighten by a simple act of service, a ride home, or a gift of something you have more than enough of? Do something selfless and generous today with God’s stuff.