Sharing Our Talents

Saturday, my husband and I assisted at a funeral Mass and burial.  I was the pianist & vocalist, and he, as an ordained deacon, gave the sermon and later performed the graveside service.

My husband doesn't assist at every funeral, but he did this one because years ago, he worked with the deceased.  He was a young engineer just out of college, and this man (21 years our senior) was well-established in the field.  He was a hard-working engineer:  responsible, dependable, and a mentor to the younger ones.  Therefore, my husband chose to preach on the parable of the talents - where the first servant took his five talents and doubled them, earning his master's praise.

I'm sure when he met this man 26 years ago, he could never have imagined he'd be preaching at his funeral, offering words of comfort to this family, and ultimately placing the man's cremains in his final resting place.

As I watched my husband do all this, I realized that in these 26 years together, he has taken his own talents and shared them many times over.  By doing so, he has enriched not only the lives of everyone he touches, but his own life as well.  It's not always easy or convenient to nurture and share your talent.  We might not even realize we have them to share, but we do.

It occurred to me on Sunday night that sharing our talents can have a direct impact on our health and fitness.  First of all - physically - when I spend time developing my talent, I'm not bored and fighting the mindless snacking urge.  Second - mentally - when I share my talent and serve others, it feels good.  Third - spiritually - these are the gifts that God gave me.  Someday I want to hear him say, "Well done, my good and faithful servant."

Now it is 6:30 AM.  Before I go to work, I'm going to post my blog, and get out there and run.  I hope my thoughts this morning inspire someone else to also make the most of their day and their talents.