Last week I explained to you that your future is not going to be determined by the cards that have been dealt to you by God, but by how you play those cards.  The way you play them will determine your blue print for your future.  Today we will continue in our discussion, using a parable of five talents talked about by Jesus:

“…To one he gave five talents, to another, two, and to another, one… Immediately the one who had received five talents went and traded with them, and gained five more. In the same manner the one who received the two talents gained two more. But he who received the one talent went away, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ But his master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’” (Matt.25:15-30)

I want to give you some principles gleaned from this parable. 

First, God expects us to make the most of what we have been given.

Second, no one has been given the same things. No one has been given the same skills, or the same potential.

Third, you did not choose these things given to you – God did.

The Bible says that God will evaluate us on how we play our cards.  Therefore, we are going to look at how to play a winning hand.  Let’s use playing poker, like five card stud, as an example. We shuffle the cards and they are dealt out to the players.  You cannot choose your cards, because everybody will get cards dealt to them by God.  God will give you a card and you might think “Why did God give me this card?”  Well, we don’t know.  Then God will give you another card, until everybody has five cards to play.

This is like a metaphor.  Each of us has been given certain cards to play that we did not choose.  It is very, very important how we play them, so that we will play them correctly, and have a winning hand.

There are FIVE UNCONTROLLABLE FACTORS that I want to expand on.  Doing so, will give you some tips on how to play your cards. They are:

1.   YOUR CONCEPTION

Everybody has been given things - your genes, your height, and your tendencies.  Some people are born with musical talent, and some are not.  This is not right or wrong – it’s just how it is, and who you are.

The Bible says “Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!”  (Ps. 139:14)

Some scriptures or some versions of the bible say that we are fearfully and wonderfully made.

God made everyone so precious.  Everyone is extremely unique.  Helen Keller was blind and mute, but spoke seven languages.  Polio stricken man named Franklin Roosevelt became President of the United States.

Paul had a thorn in the flesh that forced him to depend on God. Paul said, “Because of an illness, I came to you the first time preaching the good news.” (Gal. 4:13)

Paul stayed in a certain place because he was sick.  The people were glad that Paul got sick so that they could hear the good news.  God used Paul’s illness to spread the good news of God.

2. YOUR CONNECTIONS.

This is your connections to your family - your parents, and your siblings that you have no control over.  God had decided that “From one man He made every nation of men…and He determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live.” (Acts 17:26)

These connections to others can really affect your blue print.

How you see yourself is often determined by what you think the most important people in your life think of you.  Therefore, we have a tendency to try to be what they think.  This is dangerous when we try to please others instead of God. 

Because there are no perfect relationships, we hurt each other and misunderstand each other.  Then sin happens and we get disconnected from others, and from God.  Therefore, make sure that we delight in Jesus - the most important person in your life.

3. YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES

 As it is written, “You do not know what your life will be like tomorrow...” (Jas. 4:14)

Accidents happen, some things that happen are coincidences. Maybe someone has abused you, or has rejected you.   Maybe you have experienced a series of failures – all of these things can affect your identity. While you cannot choose many of your circumstances, you can choose how you react to them.

4. YOUR INNER CONVERSATION

You cannot control what others say to you.

Some people may tell you that you are a loser, you’ve got a problem, you are uncoordinated, etc. The danger is when we start ingraining these negative thoughts into our brains when we talk to ourselves.  You start talking to yourself and saying “I am stupid.” Or “That’s just like me - I am clumsy”.   After many times of repeating these negative sayings into our brains, these negatives become habitual thoughts, and then we end up becoming these self-defeating thoughts.

As the Bible says, “Be careful what you think because your thoughts run your life.” (Prov. 4:23) and “As a man thinks in his heart, so is he.”( Prov. 23:7)

So be careful what you think. Some things are lies and false; however, if you believe it, it becomes true.

5. YOUR CHOICES

Your choice is your wild card.  Everyone has been given choices by God.  Your choice will either be your greatest gift, or your greatest curse, because dumb choices can turn into curses if we are not careful. As it is written, “I am setting before you a blessing and a curse.”  (Deut. 11:26)

10% of life is what happens to you. 90% of life is how you respond to it. Although I cannot control my circumstances, I can control what happens to me by the choices I make.  So how do we make wise choices?   Let me give you FIVE CHOICES FOR A WINNING HAND:

1.   I CAN CHOOSE TO GET HEALTHIER.

“You made me; You created me.  Now give me the sense to follow Your commands.” (Ps. 119:73)

There are some things that you can control such as eating better, exercising regularly, what you think, what you watch and to what you expose yourself.  If you control the controllable, then this will reduce the impact that the uncontrollable have on your life.  Even though I cannot control what God has given me as a card of who I am, I can control the health of who I am.

2.   IMPROVE & DEEPEN RELATIONSHIPS.

You can choose to make your relationships better, because this card is under your control.

I can develop my communication skills.  I can reach out and make good connections, such as making good friends, and reduce bad connections.  However, one of the things that prevent us from doing so, is the fear of being rejected.  We may think “Maybe they will not like me, or maybe they will not accept me.”  Well, take some risk, and reach out to others, try to make friends.  The very reason why you are afraid to make connections is the reason you should.

So how do I overcome this fear?  The Bible says, “There is no fear in love.  But perfect love drives out fear.”(1 John 4:18)

Love gets the focus off of you and puts it on someone else.

Love asks, “I wonder if someone can use a little encouragement?”, “I wonder if someone can receive a word of affirmation?” and “Maybe someone needs someone to listen to them.”

Perfect love casts out all fear.  The antidote for fear is Love.

The best place to learn how to connect to others is church, because church is designed to be a laboratory for learning how to connect to others.

3.   I CAN CHOOSE TO TRUST GOD NO MATTER WHAT!

God will use every circumstance for your good.  You cannot change what happens to you, but you can change what happens through you.  The book of Romans says, “God knows us far better that we know ourselves. That’s why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.” (Rom. 8:27-28)

Don’t let your circumstances or what others think of you, take you hostage.  Instead choose to trust God, and live your lives in a love for God, so that every detail in your life will be worked into something good.

4.   I CAN CHOOSE WHAT I THINK ABOUT.

I cannot stop thoughts from coming into my head of what people are saying to me or about me; however, I can stop myself from dwelling on any negative thoughts.  Remember what was said does not have to be true to hurt you.  If you start thinking about what was said, you start believing it.  When you continuously think about something over and over again, it becomes a pattern of thinking.  For example, you get angry, and you get angry again, and you get angry again.  Then, when something happens, your thoughts and emotions become automatic.  You get angry, then you grimace, and then you say “Ah stupid!”

You can control this thinking.  “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.” (Rom 12.2)

There is nothing like the Bible to renew the way you think.

5.   I CAN CHOOSE JESUS AS MY SAVIOR.

The greatest card of all is the King of hearts - Jesus.  He will change your life.

You cannot change the five cards dealt to you.  You may not be able to change your conception, your connections, your circumstances, or what other people say about you or to you; however, if you wisely choose your cards, and choose Jesus to be your Lord, then He will change everything from something else, to something more.

The Bible says, “Choose this day whom you will serve…but as for me [Joshua]

and my house, we will serve the Lord” (Josh. 24:15).

Questions:

· What uncontrollable factors are given to us by God, and how can we make uncontrollable factors, controllable?

· What are the 5 choices for a winning hand that are needed to make wise choices?

· How can we use love to cast out our fears?

· Why and how should we put God first in our lives and serve Him?