Use it or lose it (To the Sources)

 ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things.’ (Matthew 25:23)

Matthew 25:14-30 (Year A: Advent-2)

                                          pic: oneplace.com

Living faithfully entails attention to what life has to offer. We look for gold without when it is within. If only we realised the potential within us waiting to be released. Were it released we would recognise, name and release the talent within others. It is believed that much of the human brain is not used. One of the great tragedies associated with poverty and injustice is that so much talent goes to waste. Lives half lived, dreams never realised, people stunted by lack of encouragement, lack of opportunity and lack of recognition.

In any parish, community, family, organisation, trade union or political party there is a variety of gifts and talents. Intelligence, wisdom, practical ability do not make up a single line. Rather talents are distributed in different ways and measures. A person starting out in life may have qualities of leadership, wisdom and courage lacking in one who is 80. A person may have wisdom, tact, insight from a life time of marriage, rearing children, work and civic engagement but be told that they must retire at a set age because that is the rule even though people live longer than ever and maintain good health in many cases.

Sometimes the biggest barriers to talent utilisation is fear:

• Fear within ourselves of failure (the servant who was afraid of failure and his master’s reaction and hid the talent in the ground)
• Fear in others that allowing talent to flourish might disturb their false peace.

With the little we have we have much to give. What is important is the first step. We might struggle over a choice to pursue a course of action because we fear that we will not be able for the challenge and risk failure and loss of reputation. But, nothing ventured nothing gained.

God’s reckless love beckons us to be reckless in giving ourselves to his work after due reflection, consultation and discernment.

Talents grow with us. We use them or we lose them like a language learned.

Warning – the reward for the generous servant is not rest but more responsibility! (Matthew 25:29 – ‘ For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance.’)