Who is the smartest person you know? The answer to that question depends on what kind of “smart” we are talking about. Smart people are smart where they are smart. That means that they may be as dumb as a bucket of bricks everywhere else!
Have you ever known a brilliant theologian who was not necessarily a great speaker? Have you ever read a gifted author who could not figure out the tip for his dinner? Have you every seen an acclaimed actor bumble his way through an interview? Of course, we all have! Why is that? Will Rogers said, “Everybody is ignorant, only on different subjects.”
The relevant question is, “What kind of smart are you?” You cannot be a good steward of what you have until you know what it is! How can you steward a gift you either do not have or of which you are unaware? This is not to say that you should despair if you do not have it all figured out, nor is it to say that you should only work when the task at hand is in an arena of your strength.
It certainly is true that there is nothing better than doing what God made you to do! II Corinthians reminds us that God has placed each of us in His service “as it hath pleased him.” A good steward is one who is fully aware of three truths:
1. Your strengths come with weaknesses. They may come with blind spots, as well. Don’t dismiss someone else’s strengths because they do not match your own; you may need their strengths to round out your own. We tend to applaud those who steward our strengths and to be blind to other’s strengths and our own corresponding weaknesses.
Making someone else’s strengths the standard for yourself is another trap. We do not steward the gifts we want; we are responsible for the ones God gave. You are not a failure merely because your “skill set” is different than your hero’s.
2. Your strengths come with time. When I was younger, I often prayed, “Lord, please confirm your calling in my life with the gifts that you give, the opportunities you present, and the confirmation of people I respect.” Those are three different elements that have and continue to have a reaffirming power in my life. Each of them come with time!
Timing is everything. A quarterback can’t throw a good pass at the wrong time. Eggs are not palatable until they are cooked. A masterful score and a talented orchestra will make nothing but noise unless the conductor can get the timing right. A good thing at the wrong time is not really a good thing.
Ronald Reagan made an entire career as a descent film actor. He did what very few aspiring actors did; he worked for Jack Warner. If Reagan had died before his run in the 1965 California gubernatorial race, he would have been considered a fairly good actor. But Reagan will not be remembered as a good actor; he will be known as a great leader. Timing. Many an “ugly duckling” is actually a beautiful swan biding her time.
3. Your strengths come with responsibility. “Good” describes your gifts. God defines your gifts. “Godly” is the word that should describe the way you use your gifts.
Don’t spend the lion’s share of your time and effort on something at which you are not and never will be good. Work hard? Yes! Waste work? No! Serving should be your priority, but your serving should become increasingly effective as God reveals what He has in mind for you.
Being gifted should make you feel neither flattered nor superior. Being gifted should make you feel responsible, because indeed you are. God doesn’t want to give to you so much as He wants to give through you! What has God given you, and how is that benefitting others today?