What Shall I do With My Life?

Albertville

11-16-08

Matt. 25:14-30

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Rev. Michael A. Trask

“What shall I do with my life?” That’s a question that young folks often ask themselves. As they stand before the big wide world that opens up to them, they evaluate their talents and their intellect, their likes and dislikes and they wonder: “What Shall I do with my life?” And for the the next few years they will seek to answer that question and answer it to the best of the their abilities.

As one approaches middle age, that question doesn’t go away, but it does change a little bit. For by the time a person has reached the age forty, the path has already been chosen, and much of it has already been walked. Commitments have been made, allegiances have been formed, opinions solidified. Middle aged people, don’t see their life as some distant thing happening in the future, but something in the right now. So instead of wondering “What shall I do with my life?” like a younger person, middle aged people ask “What am I doing with my life?”

Once retirement sets in, and the grandchildren start appearing, the question still remains, but once again it undergoes a change. Looking back reflectively, the elderly person asks himself “What have I done with my life?” Or perhaps “What can I still do with my life?” The period of opportunity has begun to pass. The roads have been walked; the bridges crossed and much of what remains is a memory of the choices that were made during youth and middle age. Hopefully, more can still be done.

What shall I do with my life? What am I doing with my life? What have I done with my life? Reflective thoughts of self-evaluation that span a lifetime. Thinking about the way we live our lives might lead us to be filled with excitement and joy over all the interesting and fulfilling things we might be or have been privileged to do. But then again, such reflective thinking might dredge up feelings of regret and dismay over choices that were made unwisely.

So this Question “What shall I do with my life”, can be quite nettlesome, and even confusing for us. We never quite figure it out, and we never answer it as well as we might like. And that’s why you might be encouraged to hear that this is the question which Jesus deals with in the Gospel lesson for today.

In the Parable we find a man who goes away on a long journey leaving his servants to manage his estate. At the beginning of the parable, they line up to receive the portion for which they will be held responsible and at the end they assemble once again to explain how they carried out their responsibilities.

A parable is simply a down-to-earth story used to communicate a greater truth. And in this particular parable, Jesus communicates the greater truth of what it means to be a human being on God’s earth. The man going on a Journey is the Lord himself; the servants, called upon to receive and take charge of his wealth are all the people of the world.

That’s really how it is: everything that we have has been given to us by God to manage until he returns. Do you have talents?  Are you intelligent? Do you have land? Do you have a lot of possessions? You might think that these things are yours, but that is not really the case. They are on loan to you from God above. He has given you a portion of his estate and he says to you “You may live here and use my stuff and manage it until I return.”

Of course, we have trouble believing this. After all, one of the first words that we learned as children is the word “Mine”, as we clutched a favorite toy to our breast in an attempt to keep another child from playing with it. We are quite used to the idea that we are the true owners of the things that we have. So it is really difficult for us to believe that everything that we have is on loan to us from God. Perhaps a few choice scripture passages might help us to see the light.

Psalm 24:1 “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.

Hag 2:8 “ The silver is mine and the gold is mine, declares the Lord almighty”

Psalm 50:10-11 [God says] every animal of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird in the mountains, and the creature of the field are mine.

1Cor. 6:19-20 “You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.

The Bible is clear, all of the things that we have; even our bodies are on loan to us from God. He has given us all this stuff and he’s given us time to use it. So the question is really not “What shall I do with MY life?” but rather, “What shall I do with the life Which God has given me; what shall I do with the time which God has given me; what shall I do with the talents which God has given me; what shall I do with the personality which God has given me; What shall I do with the intellect, power, and authority he has put into my hands?”

Now That puts a different spin on things doesn’t it? With this understanding God suddenly becomes the central figure in our lives as well he should be. This is really the secret to being truly fulfilled; this is where we find purpose and meaning for life. When we know and understand that we are here to manage what God has given us, questions like “What shall I do with my life?” are no longer so nettlesome. It becomes much more obvious what we should do.

In addition to giving us all of our stuff, God has also said much about how we can and should use it. In the Ten commandments he has clearly defined the parameters for our existence. The person who knows that his purpose is to serve God will see the commandments as a guide for living. He will honor his parents. He will be concerned about his fellow human beings, and strive to make their lives better. He will honor the institution of marriage. He will do what is right to preserve it. He will not take advantage of other human beings for his own gain.

The person who knows that he is manager of the things that God has given him. Will use his time, his talents, his health, his wealth and all that is in him to do the will of the one he serves. And you know that such people are a blessing to be around and a blessing to the world. In the parable, these people are represented by the first two servants who took what the master gave them and turned a profit for him. They took his good stuff and made more good stuff with it. To these he said “Well done! You have been good and faithful servants!”

Contrast these two with the one who believes that he himself is the origin of what he is and has. Listen again to what he said to the master on that final day “I knew that you were are hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed, so I hid your talent in the ground, here is what belongs to you.” Such a person does not get it. He does not understand that all that he is and has is from God. Instead of the ten commandments, he is a law unto himself. Simply put that says “What’s in for me?” The Self is all that’s important. He will not care about the lives of other human beings unless he can get something from them. He will nurture relationships, but only for his own benefit. Business, marriage, and family are all seen as opportunities for getting what he wants. At times, he may appear to be kind-hearted and charitable. But don’t be fooled. He does not give to charity or do kind things because he wants to help others. No, this one gives to charity so he can feel good about himself. Got to take care of yourself, that’s his credo. He will use his time, his talents, his health and his wealth to serve himself at every turn. Such people, as I’m sure you’ll agree, are not the kind of people you want to be around and they are a curse upon the world and a curse upon those who are associated with them.

My heart aches for this third man. For his words reflect what many people privately think of God. “ A hard man, harvesting where he has not sown”. There are many people who mistakenly believe that God is a demanding tyrant who has done nothing for them; that he is some distant entity who cares little for the earth or for the people who inhabit it. For proof of his hardness they point to the sufferings and tragedies all around. In times of crises they mull over all the bad things that have happened in their lives and they point the finger at God. And on the day when they come to meet him they will say “You are to blame! You are the one who have caused me all this misery!”

Man do they have it wrong! God is not a hard man; he is not a tyrant. On the contrary, God has made every effort to reach out to us. He even became a human being in Jesus Christ so he could be close to us. He lived among us. He suffered with us and for us. He knows what it’s like to be human. He knows what it’s like to be human better than any of us. For when he was on the cross all the woes of humanity weighed down on his soul. IF you are having trouble believing that God is good all you need to do is consider the cross of Christ. For there the heart of God is opened up for all to see. This is the God who was willing to suffer and die for us. He didn’t break the world, we did! He entered our world to fix it! He enters our lives to fix them.

The secret to a fulfilling life is knowing the one who has filled your life with so many good things. Or to put it more plainly, the secret to life is faith. If you are struggling with the question of “What shall I do with my life?” or “What am I doing with my life” or “What have done with my life”. There are many things that you can try as you attempt to find the answer. You can read books, you can talk to guidance counselors, you can take personality or aptitude tests and the like. Such things might help you get a handle on what you’ve been given. But if you really want to make fulfilling use of what you’ve been given, you must get to know the Giver. After all, it is his stuff that we are managing, and he knows what’s best for it. AMEN