Being worried about something that may never happen is like the unfaithful servant in the parable of the talents
Many of us have a tendency to worry about worst-case scenarios, most of which may never even happen. I have my own struggles with this. Recently, it was revealed to me that this behavior is just like that of the unfaithful servant in the parable of the talents. Let's take a look at the parable:
“For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. The one who had received the five talents went off at once and traded with them, and made five more talents. In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents. But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ But his master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
“For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. The one who had received the five talents went off at once and traded with them, and made five more talents. In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents. But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ But his master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
Matthew 25: 14 - 30
This parable shows that the faithful servants made good use of the talents, and increased the total value of what they had been given. The master was pleased, and gave them more talents to multiply. By contrast, the unfaithful servant did nothing with the money, besides keeping it safe. As a result, the little he had was taken away from from him.
Worrying about disasters that may never happen is just like being the unfaithful servant. Instead of making good use of the time we actually do have, we waste it by worrying, just like burying the talents. Whether the impending disaster happens or not, we've wasted our time on those days. By contrast, if we focus on the days we are given, and make good use of them to further the Kingdom of God, then that is like the faithful servant in the parable of the talents. That is what God desires for us to do with the days he's given us; not worry about some impending disaster.
Note: I am not saying we should forget about insurance or things like that! By all means, take reasonable actions - but then be done with it and don't worry about it anymore.
We are human and can't expect ourselves to anticipate every possible future event in our lives, and if we try to do so, we expend a huge amount of time and mental effort away from God and onto ourselves.
Let's take a look at what happened to the faithful and unfaithful servants in the parable of the talents. The faithful ones were rewarded by more talents to multiply. The unfaithful one was punished by taking away what was given to him.
Therefore, we should use the days we've been given to further the Kingdom of God. If we find ourselves worrying about possible disasters, we should recognize that a symptom of a trap of the devil, and instead focus on what we can do for God on these days.
If you found this post interesting, you may also like these related posts on this blog:
This parable shows that the faithful servants made good use of the talents, and increased the total value of what they had been given. The master was pleased, and gave them more talents to multiply. By contrast, the unfaithful servant did nothing with the money, besides keeping it safe. As a result, the little he had was taken away from from him.
Worrying about disasters that may never happen is just like being the unfaithful servant. Instead of making good use of the time we actually do have, we waste it by worrying, just like burying the talents. Whether the impending disaster happens or not, we've wasted our time on those days. By contrast, if we focus on the days we are given, and make good use of them to further the Kingdom of God, then that is like the faithful servant in the parable of the talents. That is what God desires for us to do with the days he's given us; not worry about some impending disaster.
Note: I am not saying we should forget about insurance or things like that! By all means, take reasonable actions - but then be done with it and don't worry about it anymore.
It's a snare of the devil to re-direct our attention again and again to some illusion of impending disaster.
We are human and can't expect ourselves to anticipate every possible future event in our lives, and if we try to do so, we expend a huge amount of time and mental effort away from God and onto ourselves.
Let's take a look at what happened to the faithful and unfaithful servants in the parable of the talents. The faithful ones were rewarded by more talents to multiply. The unfaithful one was punished by taking away what was given to him.
Therefore, we should use the days we've been given to further the Kingdom of God. If we find ourselves worrying about possible disasters, we should recognize that a symptom of a trap of the devil, and instead focus on what we can do for God on these days.
If you found this post interesting, you may also like these related posts on this blog:
- Why we should still pray no matter how busy we are
- Trying to stop worrying - and what finally worked for me
- Did Jesus's disciples or apostles have an "unfair advantage" compared to us?
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