Luke 20:9-18

If we take our eyes off our computer screens for a moment and look around us, we are absolutely surrounded. Surrounded with the latest 4G smartphones and the biggest flat screen TVs. Surrounded by charming homes filled with souvenirs and furnishings gathered throughout our extensive travels. Surrounded by degrees and shiny awards that we have earned by our intellectual gifts and long hours of work. And surrounded by friends and family that sincerely love and care for us, even when we mess up. In today’s world, it is so easy to convince ourselves that we deserve all of these things, and that we have earned them through our own talents and hard work.

The fact is though: these are all gifts from God.

The parable of the tenants is a strikingly similar story of how God has entrusted each and every one of us not only with a unique set of talents and resources, but also with the gift of his son Jesus. He has left us here on earth, in his vineyard, for an indeterminate amount of time and plans to come back at a later date to collect what we’ve been able to harvest.

Let us not be greedy like the tenants and believe that all that surrounds us is our own. Additionally, let’s approach each and every day, especially in this Christmas season, with a renewed focus of how we can use what we have been given for God.

Gregg Cothran