Field of Opportunity

Am I investing my talents wisely? What are my talents?

These questions have been haunting me for several hours now. After some thought, I think I may have a list of the abilities God has gifted me with to further His Kingdom.
- I am extremely outgoing and have been since the day I was born.
- I can learn new processes and tasks quickly.
- I can connect with anyone I come in contact with on a surprisingly deep level. I think this may go along with the first.
- I am a good listener..I think. I have always had people come to me as someone they can tell anything to.
- I have a huge heart for people. I think this also goes hand in hand with the first and third items. I care genuinely and deeply for all that I meet. Sometimes this ends up hurting me, but often times it's a blessing.
- I have discernment. This is both a blessing and a curse, as anyone else with discernment can verify.

Okay. So I know what some of my natural abilities are. Great. Now what? I have to know what my talents, my opportunities, are when they cross my path, right? At first, as I was sitting in the service, I started freaking out. What if I haven't been doing this right? What if I've been missing my opportunities? But then I thought of the one gift I've always known I've been given: my personality. Because of my nature - or rather, the nature with which God has blessed me - I've been able to make amazing friends, connect with people instantly and become someone that people trust. Consequently, I nearly always end up finding out if the new victim, er..friend is currently attending church anywhere. This lends itself to a "yes", a "no" or a "I don't believe in God" in one form or another. I think I've invited nearly everyone of my friends to visit the Village. Very surprisingly to me, I've actually had two of my friends thank me for inviting them to church because of the changes that have transpired in their lives because of it.
I've never looked for thanks for this, and it caught me completely off-guard when it happened. But I can look back at it now and see that I think it was God affirming that yes, I have used that gifting wisely at times. It's so daunting to try to answer the question of whether you're investing your talents wisely. But I think we need to not be too carried away too quickly with the "big" opportunities that are presented to us. If we worry incessantly about the large opportunities that may come our way, the five thousand talents as it were, we may miss the smaller ones. I can sit back now and think on the people who have impacted me recently and see where they have been faithful to invest in the abilities God has given and the consequent opportunities.
Lauren: You give so much of your husbands' time for the church and have written several beautiful songs that have impacted countless people.
Natalie: You also give of your time with your husband and brave the stage weekly to share your sweet voice with the "Village people". You have also been a wonderful listener and I appreciate your encouragement.
Luke: You also give your time up to play for us monthly and share your sweet nature with those around you. You open up easily and quickly make one feel at ease.
Molly: You also share your beautiful voice and time with the Villageites and have a bubbling personality that can always make those around you laugh. Laughter is such a blessing.
Mandy: Because of your trials in life (though they do not seem like blessings, I know), others can come to you in hard times and know that you truly understand. You have been an encouragement in simply listening to me when I've been all but ready to give up.
Andy: You are giving more and more of your time to play music and help those around you worship our Beautiful God. You also share the sweet and wise heart with which He has blessed you and are a great source of wisdom.
Darrell: You have a heart of gold that makes one feel like you genuinely care about them. You can bring healing laughter to any situation and give graciously of your time to develop relationships with those around you.

These are only a very few of the people around me that I see using their 'talents' on a daily basis. I would encourage you, as Matt did this weekend, to look intently at your natural giftings and from there discover what and how many talents He has given you. If we were to truly and wisely invest our talents for the Kingdom of God, think of the damage we could do in our time on this earth!