MEMORIAL OF SAINT AUGUSTINE, Bishop and Doctor of the Church
INVEST IN THE KINGDOM
1 Thessalonians 4:9‐11
Psalms 98:1,7‐9
Matthew 25:14‐30
Do you know your talent?
I can sing but I rarely time for practice.
I'm an engineer but I can never do a free job.
I'm a teacher but I love my business more than teaching. Teaching doesn't pay well.
I'm an accountant and I can fix your accounts so well to cover even where you have misused money.
I'm a policeman but I don't mind taking a bribe.
I'm a businessman but I don't mind doing anything as long I can make a profit.
I can never help anyone unless you give me a tip.
God grants to each of us different gifts and talents. Singing, dancing, engineering, teaching, accounting are among many other talents that we have been given. Waking up each day is also a talent/gift given to you by God. In today's gospel we meet three persons. Each is given different talents depending on their abilities. Two made more while one made nothing. To make more we need the grace of God. The grace of God is the one that has been freely given to us. God doesn't intend to give us freely and we remain at the same point. We are supposed to go a notch high and make more. Our God given gift given to us is during baptism. At baptism the Lord gifts us with faith. How then can we grow our talents?
Devotions. We have so many Devotions we can pray. Devotion to Mary, saints like the saint of the day, Eucharist.
Prayer. Spend time in prayer. You don't need much time. Just 20 minutes of serious prayer will grow your talent and give you strength.
Work of mercy. Visit the sick, bury the dead, clothe the naked, among other works always enable you to grow your talent. It's similar to giving back to God.
Love and forgiveness. Love is the greatest way to grow your talent. It's the surest means. Forgiveness is bring God like.
Perseverance and patience. You can never grow in faith or in all matters of life without the two. You need them through and through. You need them so that you journey with God.
Cross. There is no talent that doesn't have a Cross. It's the way to follow Christ. It's the way to be like Christ.
Today we celebrate a great saint. We need to reflect these words. “Take my heart, O Lord, for I cannot give it to you! Keep my heart O Lord, for I cannot keep it for you! Send me any Cross that will keep me subject to your Cross, and save me in spite of myself."
Saint Augustine, pray for us.
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