“Tuning-In To God-Given Talents” Today’s gospel is all about us, you and I, who we are, and what we have been blessed with to contribute to the world we live in. The word ‘talents’ says it all, perhaps even more clearly than it did in Christ’s time, since the word talent has become synonymous today with personal gifts, skills, and noteworthy abilities.
We might ask what does the use of our God-given gifts look like? Are we expected to perform great feats of human endeavour, accomplish momentous things, change the history of humankind? Sherry Weddell, the author of the landmark book on rebuilding the Church, called, “Forming Intentional Disciples: The Path to Knowing and Following Jesus”, invites us to recognize our ‘talents’, and then apply them for the good of our Faith, both inside and outside the doors of our places of worship. After one of Sherry’s training sessions, a lady confessed to her she was at a loss, because she was convinced she had nothing to offer, that she was essentially just an ordinary wife and mother whose children were now off on their own life journeys. She didn’t have any particular skills or special gifts. She really felt at a loss with nothing noteworthy to offer. She was also feeling her age, tired easily, had a few health issues, and didn’t feel she had the energy to offer anything of substance. But Sherry sat her down and with some key questions and a lot of listening and delving into this woman’s history, they both discovered there was one thing she loved to do, and was actually exceptional at: shopping! Grocery shopping! And comical as it might sound, within a few weeks, this ‘talented’ woman became the key director of the purchasing division for a soup kitchen and second-hand goods shop for her parish. She didn’t seem to feel her age anymore. Energy poured out of her. She had not felt this alive in years. Her gift of grace was giving ten-fold! Indeed, Proverbs points out there is no gift which multiplies itself more generously and fruitfully than the gifts a mother, and a father or guardian, use even in the humblest way to protect, nourish, love, and prepare their children for the world. But Christ warns us: if we do not use our gifts, for the sake of others, and for ourselves, also with sincere gratitude to God for giving them to us, and giving us the chance to use them; in other words, if we do not apply ourselves to our world, we will be lost in darkness. Yet, God doesn’t toss us into this darkness. We toss ourselves. We encounter this darkness when we bury our gifts from God in the backyards of our hearts. But this dark, hidden place is also from where we can begin to mature, find relief from the despair and depression we might be feeling, and tap into who God intended us to be. This experience of the darkness, strange as it might sound, can be a gift in itself. And we can begin addressing this dark place by asking, why did we bury our gifts, our talents, hide them away, even from ourselves? Charles DeGroat, pastor and psychologist, suggests the hiding of our gifts – who we are, our true personalities, the dreams our true inner selves yearn for – most often begins in our childhood. We arrive crying for the safety, warmth, and nourishment which has just been taken from us. Hopefully, we enter the arms of our mothers, accepted with joy, loved and coddled unconditionally, and begin the slow process of revealing who we are, taking the risk of being ourselves, and with care and nurturing from parents and others, we learn to tackle life with our gifts, grasping the value of applying ourselves responsibly, and growing our gifts while making the world a better place. This is what we hope, the ideal beginning of a Christian life. But sometimes we are not received into loving arms. Sometimes we are criticized for having ‘odd’ personalities or behaviours, chastised for being ‘showing offs’, or our gifts and skills are simply not even noticed, neglected, or discouraged by those we seek approval from. We begin the burying early in life. But this is not what God wants. If we feel we are not using our talents or are unsure of them, ask a friend for feedback, or perhaps ask a counsellor to help unearth them. Most importantly, ask Jesus during daily chats with him: “Jesus, can you help me determine what gifts I can bring to our community table?” With the help of God, we can invest in who we were meant to be, revive our dreams, and restore our true Christian natures and purpose in life. Invest in the talents God gave us. Rev Fr Christopher Tracey Saint Joseph Parish Saugeen Shores, Ontario
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Father's Blog
Rev. Fr. Christopher Tracey
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