| “Then the steward said within himself, What shall I do? … I cannot dig; to beg I am ashamed” (Luke 16:3). |
| In this chapter we have a story about a steward who had charge of his master’s goods. Evidently he had been misusing them, and in modern language, he was going to be fired. But rather than look at the actual story here, let us look at what the steward said. He recognized that he was not able to do manual work (digging), and he was ashamed to live from the charity of others (begging), so he made some other arrangements. We do not need to be concerned about those other arrangements for now, but only to notice that he knew what kind of work he could do, and what he could not do. |
| It is a good thing to recognize our natural abilities when we are young, for we each have skills of different kinds. Some are well equipped to work with their hands, and these people often become carpenters, tool and die makers, surgeons, etc. Others are bent toward using their minds to make a living, and these people may become internet technology people, or possibly get into business administration. It is sad that some young people today never seem to find out what they are good at doing; they end up going from one job to another, not liking any of them. I have known young people who spent most of their lives trying to figure out what to do. Others are not motivated to go out and earn their own living at all, and set up their own homes, but prefer to continue living with their parents even as adults. If we have trouble in this, we can ask the Lord to help us, for He loves to guide us in the right way. But we must remember that no job in this world is perfect; they all involve doing things that we may not like doing. This is good training; keep it up and do your best! |
| When it comes to our spiritual gifts, again, as we have seen, a time of training is often necessary in our lives. We would never think of undertaking a complicated job in natural things without having the proper training. The Lord knows how to put us through situations that train us for what He wants us to do. Often He will give us something to do that is quite simple, and then, as we progress, He leads us on to bigger things. The great thing to remember is that our service for the Lord is for His glory, and not for our own recognition. We must be content to look forward to reward in heaven, and not expect it down here. |
