In the Bible Jesus tells a story about a king who goes away for a while and leaves three of his men in charge of his money. He gives a small amount of gold to one man, a medium amount to the next guy, and a large amount to a third guy. All three are tasked with the job of investing the money so that when the king gets back he has a return on his investment.
In the story the king eventually returns and calls the men to account for what they did with the money he trusted them with. The man who was trusted with a lot tells the king he invested it and made a lot more. The king appreciates the job well done and rewards the man handsomely. The same thing happens for the second guy. But then the king hears the report from the third guy. This fellow tells the king he was afraid he would lose the money if he invested so he buried it to keep it safe. He then hands over to the king the same amount he was given to invest.
The king is upset and disappointed. How could this man waste all that time and money? How could this man waste all that potential? All because he was afraid.
Don’t be afraid
“Do not be afraid” is one of the most commonly repeated phrases in the Bible. It’s literally repeated hundreds of times. Why is that? I think because humans are naturally afraid. Like the third man the king trusted with the gold, we are afraid to invest because we don’t want to lose what we already have.
I think a lot of people want a basic, normal life. They want to be comfortable, clean and in control. But that’s not how God made you to live. God made you to change the world. That is why you are here. You can’t do that from a comfortable, clean, basic life. It’s impossible. That’s the equivalent of burying your gold.
Don’t be basic
I often think back over my life and wonder where I would be now if I had made different choices. If I had made the easy choice. If I had made the basic choice. What if I had stayed in certain relationships, would I be living a normal, comfortable life now? If I had been too afraid to leave a stable comfortable job and move across the country, what would my life look like now? I think it would look pretty normal. It would be (gasp) basic.
The truth is being basic doesn’t have anything to do with where you live or what you do for a living. Being basic is bigger than that. It is what you are doing with your life. Are you living a big life or a small one? Are you living a predictable life or an adventurous one? Are you making a difference in the world or are you simply drifting along?
Don’t bury your gold
It’s interesting to me that in the Bible you can never find God rewarding someone who maintains the status quo. God never rewards someone for being comfortable and stable. God is never impressed by someone who plays it safe. In fact in the story Jesus tells about the three men you get the distinct impression that the king would have preferred the third man lose his money trying to make more rather than return the same amount. It wasn’t necessarily the result the king was looking for, it was the attempt. The king was upset the man was afraid. He was upset the man didn’t try. In our modern vernacular, he was upset the man was basic.
Also interestingly, in the Bible the ancient version of dollar bills are called talents. I think that fits well in the story Jesus told. We have all been given talents to invest by a king, and one day we will have to show him a return on the investment. My advice? Don’t bury your talents.
