RECEIVE

We are each designed with strengths, talents, and weaknesses. Some things are only possible to achieve with a lot of effort. We can develop our abilities for God's glory or self-edification. 

The story of the three servants illustrates how our capabilities can be multiplied to honor God and grow in that talent tenfold. But if our fear of God is void of love, honor, and respect, we can misuse our talents and spend them on ourselves. (Many Christian artists whose talents developed in the church have turned their efforts to focus on the world.) 

I'm still discovering hidden talents that I allowed self-doubt to steal. I am working on developing and honing talents that may not be my strongest area. But the takeaway is that God will bless my efforts by acknowledging Him, especially if I'm willing to give him the glory. 

It not just receiving but also a matter of discovering who God has created me to be. I pray that God will guide us in developing our skills and talents and we continue to discover how God has wonderfully designed each of us. 


Psalms  139:14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.

Luke 19:11-27
International Children’s Bible
A Story About Three Servants
11 Jesus traveled closer to Jerusalem. Some of the people thought that God’s kingdom would appear soon. 12 Jesus knew that the people thought this, so he told them this story: “A very important man was preparing to go to a country far away to be made a king. Then he planned to return home and rule his people. 13 So the man called ten of his servants together. He gave a bag of money[a] to each servant. He said, ‘Do business with this money till I get back.’ 14 But the people in the kingdom hated the man. So they sent a group to follow him and say, ‘We don’t want this man to be our king!’

15 “But the man became king. When he came home, he said, ‘Call those servants who have my money. I want to know how much they earned with it.’

16 “The first servant came and said, ‘Sir, I earned ten bags of money with the one bag you gave me!’ 17 The king said to the servant, ‘Fine! You are a good servant. I see that I can trust you with small things. So now I will let you rule over ten of my cities.’

18 “The second servant said, ‘Sir, with your one bag of money I earned five bags!’ 19 The king said to this servant, ‘You can rule over five cities.’

20 “Then another servant came in. The servant said to the king, ‘Sir, here is your bag of money. I wrapped it in a piece of cloth and hid it. 21 I was afraid of you because you are a hard man. You even take money that you didn’t earn and gather food that you didn’t plant.’ 22 Then the king said to the servant, ‘You evil servant! I will use your own words to condemn you. You said that I am a hard man. You said that I even take money that I didn’t earn and gather food that I didn’t plant. 23 If that is true, then you should have put my money in the bank. Then, when I came back, my money would have earned some interest.’