February 6, 2023
“Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.”
-Colossians 3:23-24
I know some motorcyclists who do their best to keep their motorcycle in pristine condition and I know others who feel that the dirt, bugs, and grime are a badge of honor. I, personally, feel that I fall into the first group. Don’t get me wrong, I ride my motorcycle, and I’m not ashamed of those bugs and dirt that get collected on the road, but I also don’t like to let them gather too long before they get cleaned off. By now, you are probably familiar with the Baptist Biker trip to Maggie Valley on Memorial Day weekend in 2022. I found out, on that trip, that many of my friends are also fastidious about how they take care of their motorcycles. I know this because the day we all checked into the motel, I came out of my room and found 6 guys sitting beside their motorcycles with various cleaners and spray waxes set out, furiously scrubbing the collected grime from their rides, in preparation for the ride we would be taking on the following day. The truth is, many of us have quite a bit of money invested into these machines and we want to do everything possible to preserve them and ensure that they last us a long, long time. My wife has been known to tell me that she thinks I will polish the paint right off of mine if I’m not careful.
We all have things in our lives that we are careful to take extra care of, almost to the point of obsession, but we do it because these things matter to us and we take pride in them, whatever they might be. My son has a truck that he is restoring and it is obvious that he will probably polish that thing every chance he gets once it is complete. My wife has an affinity for keeping the house as clean as possible because it is something that is important to her. I have friends who take great pride in their construction projects, and they do them well. I have friends who are very particular about their clothing. I could keep going, but I don’t think it’s necessary, because I am sure you get the point. Now, these aren’t the only things that matter to us, it is just that sometimes we can tell what truly is important to someone by the way they care for it. I don’t just take care of my motorcycle, my wife doesn’t just take care of our house, these are just examples. We can all think of something that we go the extra mile to care for. What about the way we tend to the gifts that we have been given by God? Do we put the same effort into tending to those things, to being good stewards of God’s gifts? Sadly, the answer is probably ‘no.’
Some people rationalize that their material possessions are a gift from God, I won’t say that they aren’t but I will say that, if they are, they should certainly be considered among the lesser gifts that we should concern ourselves with. So what are the gifts that we should be most attentive to? I’m almost afraid to answer that question, because the list is extensive and it does vary for each of us, but there are some constants for all of us. Here are a few that come to mind: reading the Bible, communicating with God regularly, our families, our fellow man, the earth itself, just to name a few.
Let’s examine a few of these, just to see how we can truly care for and foster these gifts from God.
The Bible is God’s Word, how are we to understand what God desires for our lives, the relationship he seeks with us, if we do not spend time reading and studying the gift of His Word to us? All of our answers can be found in the pages of the Bible, every facet of our lives can, and should, be wrapped up in the absolute truths we find in the Bible. In short, we should take care to read the Bible and make it a vital part of each day of our lives.
Prayer is another gift from God, He has given us a means of direct communication with Him. We are granted the ability to bend the ear of the maker of heaven and earth. How incredible is that? Why wouldn’t we take advantage of this amazing gift? We cast our cares, our fears, our wants, and our needs at His feet and we trust that He will answer those prayers to His glory.
Our families and our fellow man were the next items I listed and I want to talk about them together. Our families are one of the most precious earthly gifts we have been given and it is so important that we build strong, healthy relationships within our families, caring for one another in every way possible. Beyond our families, we have the rest of the people that God has placed on this earth. Jesus gave this command, to love as He loves, in the Gospel of John:
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
-John 13:34-35
We demonstrate that love by exhibiting the love of Christ, living out His presence in our lives, and sharing Him with those we love. That is an interesting phrase in the context of the verse we just looked at, “those we love.” Jesus commanded us to love one another, there is not a selection process, it’s pretty clear on who we should love. Everyone. That doesn’t mean we will be best of friends with every soul alive, we will still have our differences, but we can still love in our hearts. What better way to demonstrate love for another than to share Christ with them? And there it is, we come back to the Great Commission yet again. We can share the Gospel in so many ways; through our words, our actions, the demonstration of sincere love and the great thing is we can do it anywhere we are. We each have innate gifts that lend themselves to our own unique manner of sharing the Gospel. Consider these words found in 1 Peter:
“As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace.”
-1 Peter 4:10
God has given us so much, and we are often blind to many of those gifts. Yes, we should take care of the things we own, but we cannot let them become idols in our lives. What is more important is that we tend to our gift of salvation and genuinely care for those around us enough that we present them with the Gospel whenever we can, in whatever way we can. That is some of the greatest stewardship we could ever demonstrate for God’s creation.
