Matt's Many Adventures

Recently I have been working through a book called Funding Your Ministry by Scott Mortan. At the beginning of the book the Author emphasizes working on a study through the Bible about what the Bible says about raising money. One of the passages that really stuck out to me was Philippians 4:11-13.

¹¹Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in WHATEVER situation I am to be content. ¹²I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. ¹³I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

It is a good reminder that we need to be content no matter where we are. If we have plenty then would should be thankful for God’s blessing, if we are in need we should be thankful for things that we do have. This is of course much easier said then done, and is something that I continually struggle with. It is so easy to think that if we just had more then we would be happy. But Paul is able to be content in any situation. He is able to do this because as in v13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me. Only when we put God as our one desire will we be able to reach this contentment in all of our circumstances.

As I begin my support raising in the next couple of weeks I need to remind myself that it is God who will meet my needs. Even when it may feel like the goal is unreachable, I know that God “is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think.” Please continue to pray that God would continue to stretch me as I continue to walk with Him in faith.

Danke Schön,

Matt

Recently I was reading through the gospels and read a familiar story. This time however it seemed to bring up some new thoughts.

Matthew 25:14-29 “For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. 15To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. 16He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. 17So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. 18But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money. 19Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. 20And 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.’ 21His 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.’ 22And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here I have made two talents more.’ 23His 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.’ 24He 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, 25so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ 26But 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? 27Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. 28So 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. 30And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

The first part that stood out to me was verse 15 ‘To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability‘. This shows how we are all given different responsibilities based upon our ability. God will not give us more then when are able to handle, but expects us to take care of what we have been given. Also see, 1 Peter 4:10 ‘As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace.’

Next, in verse 16 ‘He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more.’ We see this servant who has been given a large responsibility, takes what he has been given to raise more. This shows how we as servants of God need to take what God has given to us to wisely use these responsibilities to bring more glory for God’s kingdom.

In verse 17 ‘So also he who had the two talents made two talents more.’ The servant who had been given less responsibility, still took what he had been given to raise more for the master.

In verse 18 ‘But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money.’ Not only did this servant not use his responsibility wisely, he hid the money. He was afraid that he might lose what he had been given. It seems that he was unwilling to take a risk to use what he had been given in order to bring in more.

In verses 20-23 ‘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.’ 21His 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.’ 22And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here I have made two talents more.’ 23His 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.” God rewards both of the servants for acting wisely, and being faithful to what they have been given. He doesn’t compare them with one another as we might, telling one, “Well this other servant took what I gave him and brought me more then you did, you need to work harder so that you don’t fall behind.” Rather he praises both servants for being faithful with what they have been given. Many times we try and compare ourselves with one another to see how we are doing with respect to one another. But in God’s eyes, if we are faithful with what we have been given, He will reward us for what we have done. We also see the master telling them, ‘You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much.’ This shows us that when we are faithful with what we have been given, God will give us more responsibility.

Finally in verses 24 – 30 ‘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, 25so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ 26But 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? 27Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. 28So 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. 30And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ When the last servant comes to the master and tells him, “I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground,” the master tells him, “You wicked and slothful servant!” He doesn’t praise him for bringing him his one talent, but chastises him for not investing what he has been given and bringing more back. It is a warning to us that we need to not take what we have been given and use it for ourselves, or to waste our life waiting for Him to return, and not investing our lives in the work for His kingdom. We are expected to use what we have been given, and to invest it in the work of God. Not to ‘bury it in a hole.’

I know there are times when I am afraid, and take what I have been given and bury it in the ground. I pray that I might invest what has been given to me, that God may reap the reward. I hope that I might be like the wise servants who take what they have been given, invest it, and bring to the Master more then what they had been given, that I might be faithful in the little that I have been given.

This is a longer post then normal, but it has been something that has been on my mind as of late, and I wanted to share some of my thoughts in this area.

Danke Schön,
Matt