steward

What does it mean to be a good steward?

Jesus tells the parable in Matthew 25 of a man who sends off three servants to invest their money and return with more. He gives one servant five bags of gold, and this servant earns five more bags. When he returns, his master says “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!” (Matthew 25:21).

We are told that if we are good stewards of what we have, God will give us even more. He has put this on my heart lately: the concept of stewardship. I’ve been thinking about it for a few months now, thinking about what it means to be a steward of what I already have, to invest in my life as it is right now instead of stand back and wait until something better comes. Maybe what we have doesn’t look like much; maybe it is easier to fantasize about a grand and exciting life than to humble ourselves and tend to the mundane tasks set out before us in our everyday lives. If you’re anything like me, you know this is true. I’d much rather stare out a window and dream about the day when I fall madly in love with the man of my dreams than clean the dirty dishes in the sink or snake the hair out of the shower drain. But it is when we get lost in our fantasy lands that what truly matters is lost as well- living in the present, the here-and-now. Being a good steward means being present and content where we are, no matter how dull and unseemly it may be. If we are faithful with a few tedious things, God will put us in charge of many things.

Not to say that there isn’t much reward in the trivialities of everyday life. Considering most of our time is occupied in the space of ordinary living, God invites us to find Him amidst the dull repetition of our days, so much so that we can stop seeing it as dull repetition and instead see each day as an opportunity for God to show up. Soon our little mundane tasks become privileges instead of chores, as we turn our attention toward God and go through our routines to glorify Him. I’ve seen this in my life: when I stop seeing each task as an inconvenience and instead a way to serve others, God, or myself, the task is much easier to carry out. That is the starting point from which God will bless us if we remain faithful and invest in our lives fully.

The concept of investing is also compelling to me because I often feel that I float through my life, “go through the motions” so to speak, without truly investing myself completely in what I’m doing. I think this is common; we are a species that is afraid of commitment. But part of stewardship means investing, like the servant with his gold, in what we have. Maybe that means mending a broken relationship that we would rather just leave behind, or getting back up after a failure; trying again when we feel like giving up. Stewardship is engaging with what we have-the resources God has given us. We all have valuable resources, whether we recognize them or not, and we can choose to acknowledge and invest in them.

For me, being a good steward looks like waking up each morning and devoting my day to the Lord, treating my body well with good, nutritious food, showing love as best I can to those around me-in my classes, at church, at the grocery store, working hard at school to leave open opportunities that God has for me in the future, and so much more. God has entrusted me with the resources I have for a reason; now it’s my turn to steward those resources so God can bless me abundantly through them and give me more than I could ever imagine.