To Whom Much is Given, Much Will be Required

“To whom much is given, much will be required.” I remember the first time I heard this quote. What does this mean? The more you have, the more work it requires to successfully maintain it. When I was young, I was naive in believing that there were people in this world that were perfect and had it easy. But that is so far from the truth. It’s easy to assume when we don’t see behind the scenes.

Let’s break it down. If you move from an apartment to a house, it takes a lot more work to keep clean. When you start with 1 child and then increase to a total of 2 or 3 children it takes more money, time, and patience to parent them. Being promoted on a job means more tasks and responsibilities are expected of you in order to maintain the position. Getting more clothes results in more laundry or dry cleaning to do plus more space to store it all. Obtaining a more expensive vehicle leads to a higher car payment as well as keeping up with maintenance costs. That’s how it goes with everything in life.

Even if a parent is able to afford a house cleaning service, they’ll still have to work to keep their home clean. This is especially true if you have children living at home. You have to keep up with cooking, cleaning, laundry, putting away toys… the list never ends. Plus you are required to keep up with your career duties in order to make the money to pay for the service.

When you are blessed financially, more is expected of you in regards to generosity and helping others. It also takes more work to manage your funds efficiently. When you are gifted with talents, you are expected to share them for the benefit of others. This takes work. All of this is in the Bible. Part of Luke 12:48 says “… From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.”

Do you ever wonder what you can do to have peace and calm with all that is required of you? I often wondered this. I’ve learned that it’s helpful to accept that work is a part of our daily lives and that is something that will not change while we are here on this earth. It’s one of the reasons we were created. We feel a lot better about ourselves when we discipline ourselves to accomplish our tasks.

Those that have received salvation and live out the Christian faith can be encouraged by knowing that God rewards us when we do our best work in every area of our life. These areas include marriage, parenting, taking care of our home, career responsibilities, volunteer work, etc. Not only does God promise to reward us on earth, but He promises to reward us in heaven too. Understanding that you have a purpose in every area of your life really makes a difference. Instead of dragging through each day, you can be determined to do your best and find meaning as well as joy in life.

You can train your mind to see your work as a privilege, instead of a burden. I discovered this concept when I read the book Every Good Endeavor: Connecting Your Work to God’s Work by Timothy Keller. Having a good attitude while doing your work is also important. You have to do it anyway, and having a negative attitude really won’t change anything. It actually makes it worse. Our kids are always watching us so our attitude towards work will influence how they think of work. If you are always complaining about the work you have to do, most likely your children will do the same. They will have a more positive view of work if you model that behavior for them.

I think it’s also beneficial to inventory your life. You can look at your schedule to see if anything needs to be changed or removed so you don’t always feel so overwhelmed. It’s easy to forget that we have some control over our schedules and can decline things when needed. Maybe instead of signing your child up for two extracurricular activities in one season, you can reduce it to one. This way you don’t feel like you are always on the road and rushing through homework. Before committing to any activity or buying something, it helps to take time to think about the work it will require and if you can handle it or not. If you decide that you can handle it prepare yourself so you can be successful with it.

You can teach your children these concepts starting at a young age. Tell your kids that as they increase in each grade level there will be more classwork and homework required of them. The work load in kindergarten is different from first grade, second grade- all though elementary school. Then there is middle school, high school, and college. Let them know that the work will get more challenging, but that you know they have what it takes to work hard and do their best.

Prepare your children so they can positively go through life with a mindset to accomplish tasks and maintain all the blessings they receive in life. You can start by telling your children this: “God blesses us with things. The more things we have, the more is expected of us to maintain and take care of them. You are blessed with toys. It’s your responsibility to take care of them. Sometimes you receive a new toy as a gift, which can be added to the ones you already have. The more toys you have, the more toys there are for you to clean up. Let’s keep them organized in containers to make it easier for you to keep track and take care of them.”

Here’s another example. “I’m so proud of you for joining the soccer team after school. This is going to require more responsibility from you. You will be after school for an hour. So when we get home you have to be responsible to finish your homework even if you don’t feel like doing it. You will also have to make time to practice your soccer skills at home so that you will perform well at your games. Let’s make a schedule so you can remember everything you need to do when you get home so all your tasks get done before bed time.”

I remind my children and myself to persevere and strive for excellence in our work. I’ve learned to change my mindset from complaining about all the mundane tasks to realizing that they are a blessing. If I’m tempted to complain, I remind myself to be grateful for all the things and opportunities that I have. It’s also good to remember that there is always someone with less than you who would love to trade places with you.

Find ways to make what you have to do enjoyable. You have to do it anyway, so why not make it fun. Try listening to music and podcasts with positive messages while doing chores and work. I love my cup of coffee when working. The delicious taste along with the caffeine makes everything better! I do a lot of writing, so I buy colorful pens and pretty notebooks. This makes the work more pleasant. Hanging up wall decor in your home that has inspiring quotes can help motivate you while cleaning your home. Figure out what works best for you and your family.

I cannot close this post without saying that God can help you to do everything that you need to do. Just ask Him to help you and He really will guide you if you are willing to listen. Do your best with all that you have been entrusted with and enjoy the journey!