What are you doing with what God’s given you?
You know….those talents, those gifts. You and I both have them. God is that generous.
Is there a dream that has been placed inside you, but has yet to come to fruition?
I have one, possibly more.
Do you wonder if the dream was truly God after all? Maybe the wait has been difficult. You question if you’re usable or used up.
These thoughts have crossed my mind more than once.
Perhaps you’re ready to use those talents but find yourself unable to step out due to fear.
Fear and I danced a bit yesterday, as a matter of fact.
But fear didn’t win. God did. And He can win with you as well.
Yesterday I submitted a writing piece for a contest through Compel Training, an online writers’ training group that I joined this summer. (It’s a wonderful group, by the way. If you know an aspiring writer for God, this may be a worthy avenue for them to investigate.)
The contest was announced over a week ago, but for some reason or another I spotted it just two days before its deadline. My knee-jerk reaction indicated that I was waaaay too busy for such a short time frame, and there would be no entry for me.
But busyness wasn’t the root.
Fear was.
A four letter word: F-E-A-R. Fear.
I was afraid of entering for fear of penning like a preschooler. After all, there is an overflowing pile of capable writers on that site. My writing would surely pale in comparison to theirs, or so fear chimed.
There was the fear of not being accepted, of being rejected. Few of us like to be told, “No, not you,” myself included.
Perhaps you have an area where rejection’s fear lingers too?
Rejection can break us or make us. That choice is up to you and me, my friend.
I chose the later and submitted an entry, shaking in my boots all the while.
That entry? It didn’t win.
But I overcame fear, and that was a monumental victory. The cherry on top was the notification that my entry was a strong contender. That I did not anticipate. It was the knock-out punch fear needed.
Fear can stop us and knock us from allowing God’s will to play out in our lives.
Cowering, not using those gifts, because we are simply afraid, is exactly what a man in the Bible did in Matthew 25. He was given one talent. It might not have seemed like much, but it was a gift.
And that gift?
It was fully usable, ready to change lives through its use. Yes, there was work involved in putting that talent to use. But ultimately, it was usable.
The recipient of that precious gift, however, listened to fear. He buried the talent. He didn’t put it to work, but let it lay dormant and useless.
So I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground.
Here you have what is your own.
Matthew 25:25 AMP
Others, one who received two talents and another who received five, put theirs to use. While they watched their invested gift multiply, the man with one failed to muzzle the fear and buried his talent. Fear’s bark prevented his gift’s multiplication, and its bite meant lives were not touched for God’s glory.
I’ve been there. I’ve been afraid and buried my talent. I’ll start to speak out or write for God but recoil when fear barks. I want to move forward. I really do, but fear causes me to pause. It calls for talent’s funeral and burial, right then and there.
You?
By stepping out, allowing ourselves to be vulnerable, you and I can unearth those buried talents, or better yet, never bury them in the first place and watch them multiply.
Multiply for God’s glory.
You are usable and have talents that are specific to you, given by God Almighty. Those gifts are unlike the person to your left or right. It takes an intentional decision on your and my part to step out, use, and invest those talents wisely, muzzling fear’s bark. God wouldn’t give them to us if He didn’t anticipate their use.
Accept those gifts, those talents God has given you, and use them to touch lives for His glory. Regardless of fear, be a good and faithful servant.
Are you willing?
I am.
I’m committing to making this writing and speaking for Jesus thing real. I now set aside time to write every day, some of that work required to multiply the talent. It’s going to take time, so if you ask me for coffee and I say no, you’ll know why. (Never mind that I don’t like coffee…)
I hope and am praying about speaking more as well. And, I submit writings in the face of fear, shaking boots and all!
And you, good and faithful servant?
I’d love to hear how you’re muzzling fear and investing God’s talents in the comments below.
Go for it, my friend! What do you have to lose but fear itself?
As a closing note, there’s a wonderful book concerning the talents that my pastor in Hawaii published. It’s called the Pound for Pound Principle. I read it years ago, but in lieu of God’s prompting with Matthew 25 the past month, I believe it’s time to pull it off the shelf once more. You can purchase it here* if you’re interested.
* Affiliate link
Inspiring words today, Kristi. Fear can be a dangerous thing, especially when it keeps us from glorifying God with the talents that are gifts from Him.
Great job on the submission and for giving fear a knock-out punch : )
God is good, Crystal, and thank you for the encouraging words. Fear is dangerous, indeed. It’s a great day to wipe the slate clear of fear. 🙂
Just what I needed to hear today! Thank you for this!
Love it! He knows what we need, yet another encouragement to step out of those fearful zones. Go get’em, Kelly, and thanks for stopping by.