Jason sat on the church pew that Sunday morning, hoping he wouldn’t be bored.
“The Kingdom of Heaven,” the preacher said, “is like a master who gave money to his servants—ten talents to one, five talents to another, one talent to a third man. The master expected them to put their talents to use, but one man was afraid, hid his money in the ground, and was condemned.”
The preacher made his point: God doesn’t demand results, so Jason shouldn’t fear, because having nothing to show for his effort wasn’t possible. Jason needed only to be concerned whether he was putting his God-given talents to good use.
The preacher seemed to look directly at him, as if Jason knew he needed to write but wasn’t doing it. “Here’s what God says in Isaiah 55:11: So shall my word be, when it leaves my mouth—always producing results, always fulfilling my purpose. It cannot fail.”
According to the preacher, both talent and planning was overrated. People thought success came from planning their work and working their plan, but that was often a blueprint for failure, with millions of individuals and businesses filing for bankruptcy each year.
“Everybody has talents,” the preacher said. “Christians just need to keep using them, and God will take care of the results. His success is guaranteed.”
The message from Isaiah 55:11 rang clearly in Jason’s ear. “When the Lord’s message flows through my pen, it cannot be void of meaning but will always produce results, fulfilling his purpose. It cannot fail.”
Later that day, Jason began to write, wondering where his effort might lead. One thing was certain: at least one life would be changed—his own.
