Using Your Talents Wisely ~ by Phyllis Booth

In Proverbs, the worthy wife is a model of praise. She is loving and loved because she does all the wifely duties efficiently and finds time to provide for the poor. She does all this because she knows God blesses those who fear the Lord. This fear is not the kind that we feel when we are afraid or lack confidence in doing something new or taking the lead in a project. The fear of the worthy wife is the love of the Lord who knows her needs and provides for them.

We heard the words, "Blessed are those who fear the Lord" in the Responsorial Psalm. The psalm related the blessings given; such as the fruit of your handiwork, the abundance of children, and prosperity. Therefore, those who fear the Lord and walk in His ways have nothing to fear.

The writer of Thessalonians describes what the Day of the Lord's Coming will be like. When we feel secure and peaceful and life seems favorable because we have what we desire, God is not our first priority. We forget to follow the commandments and the values we learned in the Beatitudes. We become children of the darkness instead of children of the light who are ever watchful for the coming of the Lord, who will come like a thief in the night.

The Gospel of Matthew is another parable. It tells how trust, responsibility and reward are viewed in money matters by a giver, boss or manager. The ones given the most money or talents go and deposit it in an institution that doubles the amount. The one who received the least talent buries the talent because he has the fear of the Lord in his mind. This fear is in the form of a punishment. He remembers the personality of the giver and is afraid of the end results.

When the time comes for accountability, THE INDUSTRIOUS ONES ARE PRAISED AND GIVEN MORE RESPONSIBILITY. The one who was given one talent returns the talent as it was given to him. The giver is upset and takes back the talent and gives it to the one who made the most money or doubled the talents. He also has the one (servant) thrown out into the darkness where there is "wailing and grinding of the teeth." In the second reading, the children of darkness are not ready when the Lord comes like a thief in the night and can't escape their fate. Likewise, the servant in the Gospel Reading who is lazy and fearful is thrown into the darkness also. The darkness in this parable is a place outside God's Kingdom.

Fear is mentioned in the first reading as a symbol of God's love and mercy. Fear is indirectly noted in the Gospel through the action of the servant. To be worthy of God's grace when he comes, we must prepare each day through prayer, scripture readings and living the great commandment.


~ Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time ~

~ Image found at Garden of Praise ~