ALL TALENTED

The world tries to convince us that there are two types of people: the talented and the untalented. The Bible shows this perspective to be false. God created every one of us with specific inborn talents. Some have this one, some have that one, and each of us has differing degrees of various talents. But we are all talented, and it has nothing to do with whether we “deserve” our talents or not. God “sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous” (Matthew 5:45).

Every talent you have ever seen on display has its origin in God. He is the great Giver of all gifts… “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from then father of heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows” (James 1:17). The talents He continues to pour out on all of us are beyond measure, enabling His creatures to manifest great accomplishment, and resulting in every invention and advancement of the centuries. All this comes from the Lord! As the poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning reminds us, “God’s gifts put man’s best dreams to shame.”

Yet many of us believe we are untalented – without gifts, appreciation or worth. The reasons we sometimes feel this way can be grouped into two broad categories:

1. We have often not fully discovered, appreciated or honed the talents God has given us.
2. The talents we have been given are not those that are typically recognized and applauded as talents (as the popular artistic or athletic talents are).

Whatever giftings we have been given, God wants to help us discover and use them for His work. In the same way that “to search out a matter is the glory of kings,” (Proverbs 25:2), so we must search out our talents. Indeed, they are indispensable to God’ call on our lives, an integral part of our purpose in this world…

The trustworthy soldier is keenly aware of each piece of his equipment and practices to have a thorough knowledge of the use of every item. In the same way, if we are to live a victorious Christian life, we must discover, perfect and use our talents…