Saturday, September 2, 2017

2 Sept 2017 - all the small things




His master said to him, 'Well done, my good and faithful servant.
Since you were faithful in small matters,
I will give you great responsibilities.

It's OK to start small. Even if we only invest two talents, or just one, we can still make a return on the master's investment that will satisfy him. In fact, as long as we do more than nothing we are on the path to sharing our master's joy. These talents we are given have the power to increase, but only when we invest them, when we put them to work. There is always the feeling of risk involved. We worru that we will end up losing the gifts we are given. Let us not be fearful about using these gifts. As long as we're investing in the Kingdom we will have something to show for it.

The context of smallness and simplicity is why Paul's instructions to the Thessolonians make sense.

Nevertheless we urge you, brothers and sisters, to progress even more,
and to aspire to live a tranquil life,
to mind your own affairs,
and to work with your own hands,
as we instructed you.

We may worry that the LORD is looking for something massive or impressive or flashy as a return on his investment. But that is thinking as men do, not as the LORD does. He is rather looking for faithfulness from us as we  put the talents he gives us to work. He is just as happy to see them used in a tranquil life of hard work and minding our own business as he is seeing them put to work in any other calling we may have.
The closer one approaches to God, the simpler one becomes.- Saint Teresa of Avila
Simplicity, quiet, and hard work are not escape from the call to spread the Kingdom. They are one of the main ways in which the Kingdom is spread, provided they are done with the talents we are given. If we are called to other callings beyond just these they may still be our starting place. The master may give us more of his wealth once he sees that we use what his initial gift well.

Let the rivers clap their hands,
the mountains shout with them for joy.
Before the LORD, for he comes,
for he comes to rule the earth;
He will rule the world with justice
and the peoples with equity.



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