Parable of the Talents – Family Faith Companion

Why you need a thanksgiving chair

Posted on November 26, 2015June 1, 2016 by Carol Hulbert

This Thanksgiving as you gather ’round the table, I’ll bet there will be a time for reviewing your gratitude. There likely will be lists. Every year we write ours on the table cloth.

There are the usual entries: Our health, our families, our friends, our homes, our stuff. Do we remember to add our skills and abilities; our talents?

Everything is a gift.

Yes, everything.

Even the hard things.

I wonder how the third servant in the Parable of the Talents felt, after he’d been lambasted by his master? Did he consider that a gift?

I wonder how our experience of misfortune can be changed if we consider it a gift?

Watch this short video. It’s powerful. It’s a reminder to always give thanks, for everything.

And to teach our children to do likewise.

(If reading this in an email, you can watch this video on YouTube.)

Happy Thanksgiving!

a blue line

Some of you have seen this before. Is it okay if I do a repeat? I’m using parts of a post I published two years ago… but this one is good. It’s worth the re-exposing. Thanks for grace.

~~ Carol

Video produced by Shift Worship.

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Are you hiding your talents and skills? Take courage!

Posted on November 19, 2015 by Carol Hulbert

After hearing The Parable of the Talents, we pondered what was the most surprising thing we learned.

The hands down winner (in a crowd of 1st graders) was that the third servant chose to bury his “talent.”

Indeed, who today would bury something valuable?

I explained that the people who heard Jesus tell this parable would have approvingly nodded their heads when told of this concealing effort. In those days, to bury money placed into your care was considered a secure way of protecting a treasure. This third servant had done what everyone would have expected – gone for his shovel!

Except, according to the parable, the master wasn’t happy with this choice.
What resembled a smart decision, delivered a sad outcome.

How should we be guided by this parable — this story used by Jesus to teach his listeners about living in God’s kingdom?

Don’t bury your talents.

And here we aren’t only talking about the first century use of the word “talent” which referred to a large sum of silver or gold. Our use of the word “talents” encompasses much more — all of our resources including our money, our skills, our abilities, our time, and our stuff! Don’t hide these aptitudes; use them!

Making use of our talents? Easy, right?

What is holding you back? Are you allowing your “inner voice” to control your actions?

Do you explain away your behavior with…

I’m too busy.
My efforts are too small to make a difference.
I’m not ready.
I am afraid.
What will people think?

I’ve bestowed all of these excuses upon myself. I need a daily reminder to banish my fearfulness.

Everything is a gift.

Today, marks the ten-year anniversary of my near-fatal brain aneurysm. Because of an incredible story of everything happening at just the right moment, and lots of prayer, and skilled medical care, I survived. I received a precious gift: a second chance to do my best with the gifts God has given me.

Yet I don’t always act in this manner. I behave like the third servant in our parable.

Unlike his fellow-workers who were emboldened by the chance to make something of themselves — to serve their master faithfully — this third servant was afraid.

He forfeited opportunities to risk investing his gifts.

God asks only one thing for giving us the gold coin of life: Use what you have to facilitate God’s kingdom here on earth. We are not told how to use our talents, just that we should use them.

How will you make use of your resources, your gifts, your money, your skills, your abilities, and your time?

Photo credits:
An illustration from my favorite kids Bible, The Jesus Storybook Bible, used under an educational fair use category. (Link goes to Ann Arbor District Library holding.)

Your wealth of astonishing talents? Will you unlock them?

Posted on November 11, 2015September 2, 2016 by Carol Hulbert

We’ve all got “gifts” and talents — yes, even you. (Even me!) The question is…

How will we use those gifts?

This is the focus of our Rotation on The Parable of the Talents.

Read about our story in Matthew 25:14-28.
Talk about this story over the dinner table. (Or wherever your household is gathered together.)
Check out the growing list of opportunities to foster faith learning at home for this month’s story.

Join us as we explore this story!

On Sundays, at the downtown location…

Date	Our workshops for 1st through 5th graders…
	Art A	Art B	Games A	Games B	Cooking A	Cooking B
11/15	2nd grade	6th grade	3rd grade	1st grade	4th grade	5th grade
11/22	3rd grade	4th grade	5th grade	2nd grade	1st grade	—
11/29	1st grade	5th grade	4th grade	—	3rd grade	2nd grade

workshop location in the bulletin Check the bulletin for the location of workshops.

And here’s what the 6th graders will be doing on Sundays downtown… (They’ll always be in the Pine Room!)

11/15	11/22	11/29
Art Workshop – help 2nd graders	Host Connections	To be announced

And on Saturdays at the Green Wood location, here is the schedule…

Date	Workshop or Activity
11/14	Games A Workshop
11/21	Art Workshop
11/28	Worship with your family. It’s the start of Advent! Read the scripture ahead of time.

What’s happening in each workshop?

In the Art Workshops (A and B are both the same) students create a “wanted” poster using a unique self-portrait method, listing their “talents” and gifts on the poster.
In the Games A Workshop students will participate in a quiz game with a room-sized game board and game wheel.
In the Games B Workshop students will watch the story on a PowerPoint and then play a quiz game.
In the Cooking Workshops (A and B are both the same) students make “fortune cookies” with fortunes relating to stewardship.

On Saturday nights and on Sunday mornings at FUMC our Cool Disciples experience Rotation Model Christian education, as they learn about Bible stories and concepts through kid-friendly multimedia workshops. If you are in the area please join us for the fun learning at First United Methodist Church in Ann Arbor, MI.

Photo credits:
Kids sharing by Donnie Ray Jones, who licensed this photo on Flickr under a Creative Commons License.
Other photos from my archives.

Give your family a gift. Will you make a new habit?

Posted on November 5, 2015November 9, 2015 by Carol Hulbert

This coming Sunday, Rev. Nancy starts off a new sermon series on Stewardship. The scripture passage will be Matthew 25:14-28, which happens to be our story for our next Rotation!

Here’s a suggestion for giving your family a gift…

a couple with coffee Attend the 9:30 service and then, leave with the kids after the children’s time.

The kids head to class and you grab some coffee.

(No, that’s not the gift.)

It’s a little known factoid that coffee is ready in time for the choir members to imbibe. (You may need to look in the kitchen. Please be sure to make a donation for your coffee during Connections time.)

Find a quiet place to sit for 40 minutes. Though space on Sunday mornings is at a premium, wander about, you’ll find a spot. Catch up on your reading. (Please keep your chatting to a hush in a space like the Social Hall where a class is being held.) Then at 11:15… (here comes the gift)…

Attend worship as a family.

Use these discussion questions to debrief the service:

What was your favorite part of worship? Did you have a least favorite part?
In the Bible story, how much did the master give to each of his servants? (Answer)
What did the story mean by a “talent?” (Ans: In Bible times a talent was a measure of the weight of a precious metal.)
What did each servant do with what the master gave him?
How did the master feel about each servants choice?
Today we use the word “talent” to mean our abilities. Go around the table and identify an ability – a talent – of the person on your left.
How do you suppose God feels when we use our skills to help others?
How do you suppose God feels if we “hide” our talents?
What skill or talent would you like to develop? What do you feel you need to do to start?
God gave us our talents. God gave us everything we have! What prayer can we say to thank God for all of our wonderful gifts.