Gifts and Talents

          We all work hard for the things we have. We spend our time working hard every day, and save our money for when we get old. We sometimes sit back and look at what we have attained. Some of us are proud of what we have accomplished.

      There was a rich man who had fields that yielded plentifully. He did not have enough room to store his crops. He said to himself “I will pull down my barns and build greater barns. I will store all my crops and my goods. And I will say to my soul, eat, drink, and be merry.” But God said to him, “fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?”

      Everything we have, God has given to us. He is the One that gives us our gifts a talents. It is He who gives us the power to gain wealth. Everything we have has been given to us by God. God owns everything. He owns this earth, the stars, the galaxies, and he owns us. He made us as we are. He gives us everything we have.

      When we came into this earth we had nothing. When we leave this earth we will take nothing with us. While we are here we are stewards of what God has given us. It is He who gives us the power to gain wealth. He gives us a spouse, and the children we have. He gives us the ability to do the job we have. Everything comes to us through God. We have no right to be proud of what we have accomplished. We only accomplish what God has provided for us. We are the stewards for things that God has given to us. We can be bad stewards, or we can be good stewards.

      A good steward gives his tithes and offerings. I say give, and not pay, his tithes is because it already belongs to Him. From the beginning of time He has required a tithe from our increase. The offerings are what we decide to give. God wants us to be generous, just as He is generous to us.

      Being a good steward is not so much about money, it is about everything we do. It is about our time; it is who we listen to; it is about everything we do. Our time on this earth is very short. We should not waste our time doing nothing. We are here to be a blessing to others: To help those in need. We are here to do the will of our Father.

      Being a good steward means to listen to the right voices. The air around us is filled with a lot of voices. There are people, the enemy, and God, trying to speak into our ears: all of them at the same time. In Luke Chapter 8, it says “Take heed what you hear.” We have to be stewards of who we listen to. God has many ways to speak to us. There are Circumstances, Counsel, Peace, People, Dreams and Visions, our Thoughts, Natural Manifestations, Supernatural Manifestations, the Bible, and a still small Voice. We need to tune into God and listen to what He has to say.

A good steward honors God. A good steward is a blessing to those around us. We are on this earth to help the people around us to find God, and to lead them to their redeemer. We are to be a blessing to everyone around us; then we are good stewards doing the will of our Father.

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      New King James Version
Deuteronomy 8:17 "then you say in your heart, `My power and the might of my hand have gained me this wealth.'
18 "And you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.

      New King James Version
Psalms 50:10 For every beast of the forest is Mine, And the cattle on a thousand hills.
11 I know all the birds of the mountains, And the wild beasts of the field are Mine.
12 "If I were hungry, I would not tell you; For the world is Mine, and all its fullness.

      New King James Version
Psalms 24:1 The earth is the LORD'S, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein.

      New King James Version
Luke 12:42 And the Lord said, "Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his master will make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of food in due season?
43 "Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes.
44 "Truly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all that he has.

      New King James Version
Luke 16:10 "He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much.
11 "Therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?
12 "And if you have not been faithful in what is another man's, who will give you what is your own?
13 "No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon."

      New King James Version
Luke 12:16 Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: "The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully.
17 "And he thought within himself, saying, `What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?'
18 "So he said, `I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods.
19 `And I will say to my soul, "Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry."'
20 "But God said to him, `Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?'
21 "So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God."

      New King James Version
Colossians 3:15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.

      New King James Version
Luke 8:18 "Therefore take heed how you hear. For whoever has, to him more will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he seems to have will be taken from him."