Being Faithful Leads to Being Fruitful
If you are faithful to be a good steward over what God has placed in your hands today, he will continue to place more things in your hand. It is hard to be fruitful when you spend your life scrolling through everyone else’s life. It is hard to be fruitful when you spend your life competing with others. It is hard to be fruitful when you constantly compare your life with someone else’s. It is hard to be fruitful if you spend your life wishing you had another life. It is hard to be fruitful when you do not put your hand to your plough because you don’t like the one you have. It is hard to be fruitful if you are constantly complaining, cynical or discontent. The only way to live the life and purpose God has for you, is to actually start living your life. Today is a good day to stop wishing for another life, begin living your life. If you are faithful with what God has placed in your hands now, God will be able to trust you with what’s in your heart later. Trust him. He is faithful.
—Christine Caine
This devotional thought draws my mind to the parable of the talents Jesus taught his disciples. He had just encouraged them to live expectantly, for “no one knows the day or the hour” the Son of Man would return. How will they be found when he returns? In the parable, a landowner goes away for a time, leaving three servants a number of talents (portions of the landowner’s wealth) to tend while he was away, “each according to his ability” the text reads. One received 5 talents, one 2 talents, and one received 1 talent. The landowner’s expectation was that each servant would utilize the talents wisely, investing and growing them while he was away. Sound familiar? It would be easy—and essentially we see this play out in this parable—for each to compare the talents they received to those others were entrusted with, to become proud or jealous, and react. How often we look at the gifts, talents, and abilities of others and covet what they have. You know the rest of the story. The landowner returns to find which of his servants were faithful and which were neglectful of the trust he’d bestowed on them. Let us quit looking at others’ gifts and situations and fully embrace our own. One with God is a majority. He’s entrusted you with His grace and goodness. Operate in it, thankfully and joyfully. Sow bountifully. Allow the Lord to bring the increase! Make a difference for the Kingdom of God with what He’s given you. –DH
—David Hoskins, Founder & Care Guide, Sanctuary Clinics