The Parable of the Talents...

A very wise man used a parable from Matthew 25:14-30, The Parable of the Talents, in his devotional this morning. He then went on to talk about how God has given us all gifts and how we need to be investing them in the kingdom, otherwise others are suffering because of it. He definitely put on a different spin that I had never thought of, but he's right. Tonight I watched "Saw II", yeah, I probably shouldn't have blah blah, but curiosity had me. Anyway, after being reminded of how valuable life is; and the way we live it and remembering this morning's devotional it had me thinking. It isn't something I had never thought of before, but this time it was different, and I feel very convicted to change. You see, I have been wasting the "talents" God has given me. I am the man who buried his out of fear. I can't say I know for sure what God has gifted me with specifically, and for what specifically but two things stick out.
These two things are areas of potential strength; a strength that I am ashamed to say hasn't even been tapped into. I've floated along just getting by on whatever just happened to make it possible, never investing or putting forth effort. I could have really worked these "muscles" if you will and they could have grown, developed, and made possible who knows what. Instead, I have been lazy, and they have become weak, almost to the point of crippling me in those areas. I see now that there are losses I will never recover. What's sad is I think a lot of it has been stunted, on my choosing, out of fear and pride. "It is better to never try, and therefore never know, than to actually try and see where your ability meets failure." I could walk along knowing I could probably do better, but also knowing I wasn't even trying...a mystery, endless daydreams of what could possibly be, and of course as I would have wanted it to be. This is utterly pathetic. But it is something I have finally allowed myself to articulate in understanding, and face the true meaning behind my present state and the waste of time that brought me here.
What does this mean? Well, I figure I can keep sloshing in the mud or I can actually try to get out. I have two potentially wonderful gifts that I have not even given God the chance to develop, and that is selfish and foolish. Soo.... it's time, time to step out into that land of vulnerability where those gifts might meet their end, but also where God can move for glory. It's time to stop hiding and embrace the things this being was engineered to do and be. Here's to investing in those "talents", and giving God the chance to do what he created me to do.