GIFTING ACCORDING TO ABILITIES
Much have been written and spoken on how the servants used well and earned more with the talents entrusted to them by the Lord. What I want us to focus this time is the rationale used by the Lord in apportioning the talents.
The Gospel narration mentions only one criterion used by the Lord in granting the talents to each of the servants: “to each according to his ability.” Therefore, it is not entirely true that God’s gifts are given without sine qua non considerations. In other parts of the Gospel we read about Jesus’ teaching that it is not right to throw bread for children to the dogs, in as much as it is not right to simply throw your pearls to pigs who do not know their real value. Then, in yet another part of the Gospels, Jesus gives this enigmatic verse: “To him who has more, more will be given. To those who have less, even the less they have will be given to those who have.”
God is a wise investor of His gifts. Though He is generous, we also have to prove ourselves worthy of and appreciative of His generosity. Generosity and charity should not lead to wasteful living. Give generously to someone who knows how to use the gifts, and you will be consoled to find that he has done better with his life. Give generously to someone who is lazy, and you will be frustrated to realize that it has not made a difference in his life. The lazy one, no matter how much you give him, will always be miserable.
I believe that discourses about grace can be abused and even distorted. Some persons have made such discourses an alibi for their unproductive lives. The great theologian St. Thomas Aquinas —who, by the way, is also known for his spiritual hymns and prayers — loved to say, “agere sequitur esse” (doing follows being). If one’s being is faulty, for instance, a pessimist, a defeatist, a skeptic, his ability to perform will be consistently negative, too. The problem is not the lack of God’s grace. The ability of the person to receive the gifts with right appreciation and disposition is what makes the difference. Fr. Domie Guzman, SSP
REFLECTION QUESTIONS: What changes happened in your life because you used your God-given gifts? How can you be a better and more conscientious giver and sharer of gifts?
Lord Jesus, thank You for Your generosity. Without Your grace, I am and can do nothing.
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