“Everyone is born with a business within them. The problem is that very few people find it.” —Dr. Myles Monroe

One of the things that I’m truly grateful for in my life is that I was able to discover my gifts and talents before I was too old to use them. Because I took the time to develop myself in my areas of gifting, I was able to discover my purpose for living and I designed the life that I wanted for myself and my family.

In 2022, our nations are in such financial disarray that it’s hard to find the silver lining. In June inflation hit a 40 year high in America. Most people are not satisfied with their financial condition and 43% of consumers expect to add to their debt in the second half of the year. As I read articles I keep asking myself “why are so many of us living below our potential?

Everyone of us was given talents and natural abilities at birth, but very few of us develop our talents to a high level of quality where we can generate wealth by using our innate super powers. Your gift was given to you for a purpose. It is within fulfilling that purpose that true success can be obtained. The bible says in proverbs 18:16 that “A person's gift will make room for them in the world.” Your gift is there to make a way for you in life.

The Parable of The Talents

In the bible, there is a story called “The parable of the talents.” I’ve read it many times before but I started seeing it in a different perspective recently. If you are not familiar with this parable it is one of the teachings about the kingdom of heaven that Jesus taught his disciples. In it he teaches us about 5 principles about wealth. If you don’t understand these 5 things, you will continue to live a life of perpetual poverty. Let’s take a closer look.

1. Your Abilities Determine How Much You Get

Jesus begins his teaching by describing the kingdom of heaven by using an illustration of a man traveling that gives his servants some of his goods to manage. “To one servant he gave five talents, and to another servant he gave two talents, and to another servant he gave one talent. He gave to every servant according to their several abilities; and he went on his journey.” I used to look at the talents simply as money because that is what they were in the olden times. But I started looking at talents as actual gifts and talents that we all have.

It’s interesting that the master gave each of his servants something they could use to trade. And he gave it to them based on their current abilities. When God created Man, he gave us each talents according to our natural abilities. Some people were given more than others. These talents were given to us to be used and managed appropriately. And everybody was given something.

2. Your Output is Determined by Your Input

“The servant that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made five more talents. And likewise the servant who received two talents, also gained two more. But the servant that had received one talent, went and dug up the earth, and hid the talent that he received from his Lord.”

God gave powers and abilities to everyone in order that they may increase the wealth that was given to them. The two servants who increased their talents did so by trading with them. A trade is normally defined as the action of buying and selling goods and services. But it also means a craft or a skilled job.

When you use your talents, you are developing them and increasing your skills. By using your talents, you are able to produce more talents and generate more wealth. Your gifts were given to you to trade and do business with. The wealth comes from trading not from just having, because people normally get out from the value they put in. Notice the one servant that buried his talent.

3. Accountability Comes with Responsibility

“After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. The servant who received five talents brought five more. The master said ‘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 in my happiness!’” The servant with the two talents also came and presented two more. And the master said the same to him as he said to the first servant.

We all will have to give an account of what we did with what we were given. This is what judgment is all about. When you think of judgment, it’s not just about God looking to see if you were “naughty or nice” to others in the world. It’s also about God judging how you used your time, your talents, and your abilities. God is a rewarder of those who properly manage the things that they have and he gives them more.

4. Purpose is Tied to Success

“Then the servant who received one talent came to the master. He said ‘Master, I knew that you are a hardman, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’

His master replied ‘You wicked and lazy servant! So you know that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? Well then you should have put my talent with the exchangers and then at my coming I should have received my own talent with interest.’”

The last servant can be seen as someone who didn’t fulfill the purpose that they were given. Instead of using their God-given talent, some people just let their gifts stay dormant and unused. When a manufacturer creates a product, there is an expectation that the product must fulfill a particular purpose or that product will be seen as a failure. The same can be said for us. Our Creator made us for a reason. That reason is the purpose of our life. Success is gained by fulfilling your purpose. It’s as simple as that.

Keep in mind that God considers a lazy person as being wicked. But what I found really distasteful about the third servant is that he tried to place the blame on his master as the reason why he didn’t use the talent that was given to him. That’s just wrong in my opinion.

5. The More Your Ability Increases The More You Are Given

“The master continues and says ‘Take the talent from him and give it to him which has 10 talents. To everyone that has shall be given more, and they shall have an abundance. But from those who have not shall be taken away even that which they have.”

What was very intriguing about this part is how the master decided to take the one talent that the servant had and he gave it to the other servant who increased his talents to 10. This part of the parable helped me understand two principles that God established in creation. One is the principle of management. If you manage well what you have then more will be given to you, however if you don’t manage what you have well then you will eventually lose it and it will be given to someone else. The other is the principle of abundance. If you are a good steward of what God has given you and you put in the work, you will eventually have an abundance of wealth in life.

Conclusion

God expects all of us to be productive and profitable in our lives. We all were given the ability to do this but most of us lack in the area of our character and that causes us to fall short. Being successful and wealthy in life can be very simple but it does require some hard work. I like to look at it as you get out what you put in it. So if you are using your talents and increasing your skills you will increase your value as an individual. But if you are lazy and you procrastinate then you will not.

If you like this article, I encourage you to watch my free training video “4 Key Reasons Why Most Entrepreneurs and Business Owners fail at life”. In it I share 4 power keys of leveling up. Also if you like this content, please sign up for our newsletter. Thanks for reading!

Hans Fleurimont,
Founder & CEO of The Galerie Media Inc.

Five Reasons Why You Will Never Achieve True Wealth in Your Life… Yea, You!