I have had the wonderful opportunity to travel to Africa on mission trips. Africa was probably last on the list of places I wanted to travel to, but I was longing for an opportunity to be a part of a missions team. I told God, “I’ll go anywhere!” So, when the door opened for Burkina Faso, West Africa, I walked through it with my husband. We became a part of a small team that would distribute shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child, a ministry of Samaritan’s Purse headed by Franklin Graham.
There are times when being on mission can be frightening. One of the scariest aspects of the trip for me was not that we were the only white faces in the towns we visited or traveling to remote areas where there was no running water or electricity, it was carrying a significant amount of cash in a hidden money belt. I didn’t even know such a thing existed! What if the belt fell off or I forgot to zip the pocket and the cash fell out? I felt the weight of the responsibility and I wanted to fulfill it well. I had been given a trust. In this case, the money was not our own. It had been given to us by a friend for the purpose of ministry in Burkina Faso. We were praying and looking for the place where God wanted us to invest it. Until then, we had to conceal it and keep it with us since it would not be safe left anywhere else. I was relieved when we knew where the investment was to be made and our trust was discharged. I was grateful for the grace God had given me to be able to fulfill that trust.
Every day you and I have a trust to fulfill. We have been entrusted with great treasures that are not our own. They come from God and, just as with the cash I carried, we have a responsibility to discover where those treasures are to be spent. What treasures? Just look around and look within. Whatever you have - your home, your “stuff”, your family, your time, your abilities - whatever it is that you call yours isn’t yours. It has been given to you temporarily and belongs to God. The challenge, the adventure of everyday, is discerning how God wants you to spend what belongs to HIim - your possessions, your calendar, your relationships, your gifting. Are you a trustworthy steward?
A steward in Biblical times was one who managed a wealthy man’s resources. Everything in the household was entrusted to him. A steward recognizes that nothing he is caring for is his own. It belongs to the master, but his job is to use it well, to protect it and even to increase it. A good steward was known to be reliable and trustworthy. The master of the house did not have to worry about what belonged to him. As a steward of all that God has given me it is my aim and my responsibility to use what God has entrusted to me for His glory. I know that God has called me to write, among other things, therefore, I strive to do my best because whatever ability I have is not my own. It has been given to me by God to use for His glory, to steward for His purposes, to advance His kingdom. Whatever it is that is entrusted to me I want to lift back up to God.
How are you spending God’s treasure? This is a challenge every one of us faces and, if we are honest, we will recognize ways that we are spending God’s treasure well and other areas where we are falling far short. We may struggle with thinking of our stuff as our stuff, or we might take relationships for granted and not invest ourselves in them as much as we can. This idea of stewarding God’s stuff is a big one and it can be overwhelming. How can I possibly do a good job taking care of all that God has given me once I recognize that nothing is really mine? It’s too big a job! I want to be found trustworthy, but I feel unable. How can I possibly do this?!
You and I are not able to be trustworthy stewards of God’s treasure without God’s help. That is why He sent us the Holy Spirit. As we allow the Holy Spirit to produce His fruit in us we find ourselves becoming more faithful. Faithfulness is a fruit of the Holy Spirit, the evidence of His work in our lives. Faithfulness means that I can be depended on to care for what has been entrusted to me. I will be more reliable with my words and relationships. I will be more dependable with my calendar and my commitments. I wil be increasingly trustworthy to use my stuff in a way that honors God and promotes His purposes. Remember this, dear friends: Fruit grows. Where you lack in faithfulness, as I also recognize areas that I am not spending God’s treasure as well as I should be, look to see how your faithfulness has grown. Recognize that the Holy Spirit is doing His work in you and make it your aim to keep letting Him grow the fruit of faithfulness in you. We will always be growing in our ability to be trustworthy with God’s treasures.
Can I trust you? That’s the question God is asking you and me today. But, be at peace, Dear One, if you feel like your answer is “no” the Holy Spirit is available to help you become the trustworthy, reliable and faithful steward that you long to be. He will grow the fruit of faithfulness in you.
Key thought: I am called to be trustworthy with God’s treasure.
A Scripture to consider: Those who have been given a trust must prove that they are faithful. 1 Corinthians 4:2 NIRV
A YES challenge: How are you spending God’s treasure? Evaluate how you are caring for your time, your possessions, your gifting, your relationships. What is one change you need to make today so that you can be found faithful? Ask the Holy Spirit to help you grow faithfulness in this area.
Prayer: Lord, as I consider that nothing I have is my own, no gifting, no relationship, no position, no possession, I am overwhelmed with the responsibility of caring for the treasures You have entrusted to me. There is no way that I can do this well without the empowering of Your Holy Spirit. I want to be found faithful. Grow faithfulness in me. Amen.