Time, Talents, and Treasures

- Pastor Samantha Barrera

“O our God, we thank you and praise your glorious name! But who am I, and who are my people, that we could give anything to you? Everything we have has come from you, and we give you only what you first gave us!” 1 Chronicles 29:13-14 (NLT)

When we talk about giving and stewardship, usually everyone’s mind immediately goes to money, but stewardship is so much more encompassing than that. Stewardship is pairing our faith with our responsibility and our actions.

The enemy is a master of hindering us from stewarding our time, treasures, and talents as God designed. The world teaches us that everything is ours, not God’s. The enemy uses this to attack our identity in Christ, which hinders us from faithful stewardship of everything we have. We fall prey to the false mindset that we are giving away what is rightfully ours or that what we have to give and what we can do is not enough.

It is God who entrusts us with everything that we have. We, as Christians, are called to use and steward our time, talents, and treasure effectively and efficiently. We are called to steward our resources not how we think we should, not by our logic, but by how God tells us we should. What you have to give is God’s first, and in His hands is more than enough.

For example, it takes time to load, move, and stock food on the shelves of a food pantry. Your talent is woodworking; you can make those shelves or carts to wheel heavy items. Perhaps you are great at making people feel welcome, and your smile and kindness can get people through those doors. Maybe that blanket you think is a small donation is the only thing keeping someone warm.

To make a difference, you have to be willing. Faith is taking the first step and being confident of its impact on your church, neighborhood, community, world, and kingdom because of how God can use it. Treasure is just one piece of the puzzle. God gave each of us time and talents; it takes all three parts to function as one body and make a difference in the lives of others and ourselves.

Make a Difference:

This week, I want to challenge you to find new ways to give your time, treasures, and talents generously. Everything we have is God’s first; in His hands, it can go further than we could ever imagine.

As You Read:

Remember what David gave to the nation of Israel, preparing them for the next king. He gave resources, time, and energy to the kingdom and the Lord’s temple. What is He asking you to steward well?