At a big, City Church, it was the custom to offer a free lunch to first time-visitors after the noon service. One Sunday, a woman wandered into the Church for the first time. She was inspired by the friendly spirit of the congregation who, after the service, ushered her into an adjoining hall for a free lunch. She followed the crowd through the serving line but tried to pay for her lunch. “No, No.” said the cashier. “You are a first time visitor, so your lunch is free.” The woman replied, “I appreciate the kind offer but I want this lunch to cost me something.” Hearing this, the cashier replied, “If you stay around here long enough, it will cost you a lot.” The woman asked, “what do you mean by a lot?” The cashier responded,”my dear, it will cost you your life.”

There are talents and talents, but to offer your life to a good cause must surely rank as the greatest of talents.

Life is God’s gift to us, and He wants us to use it well. Not only is God our Creator, He also endows us with talents. Each person is created unique and special, endowed with talents which the Lord wants to be used responsibly rather than buried away, unattended and unacknowledged. You should never dim your talent because others are too afraid to come out of the dark.

The parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14–30) tells the story of a rich man, who represents God, who gives five talents, two talents, and one talent to three different people to be used responsibly. The two who received five talents and two talents doubled the value of their talents. But the one who received one talent played it safe, and buried his talent in the ground. When the day of reckoning came round, the Lord of the talents praised the first two who doubled their talents but had harsh words for the person who produced nothing from what he was given. That is why the Lord says, “For to everyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away” (Matthew 25:29).

If you don’t use it you lose it, is a wise maxim. Every talent, no matter how small, has a purpose. Brother Lawrence was a humble but wise friar. He wrote a beautiful book called ‘Practicing the presence of God.’ In it, he describes how he used his God-given talent in the kitchen by preparing meals and serving others. Arthur F. Miller has written a powerful book on ‘The power of Uniqueness’ which challenges everyone to discover their own talents because everybody is gifted in some way. The important thing is to discover your talent, to delight in it and to develop it.

It could be you have a talent for visiting the sick, for taking care of the homeless, for counseling others, for playing a particular sport or musical instrument, for being a scientist, an inventor, a carpenter, a plumber, a teacher, a physician, a lawyer, a writer. Whatever your talent is, it should not be hoarded or kept hidden. You must let it shine. “You are the light of the world,” says the Lord, and your “light should not be hidden under a bushel basket, but placed where everyone can see it” (Matthew 5:14–16).

The problem with the person in the Parable of the Talents, who received just one talent, was that he was afraid to use it responsibly. He was afraid to develop it according to his capacity and share it. So, he buried it and kept it hidden.

Your talents are not for you alone. They are given for the benefit of others. God blessed you with your talent for the joy you may give in return.

Whatever your talent is, no matter how small or large, you are responsible for developing it and sharing and passing it along so it can increase and multiply.

—Fr. Hugh Duffy