Use It or Lose It!

"To the man who has, more will be given; and he who has not, will lose even the little he thinks he has" (Luke 8:18).

This certainly seems unfair. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer. Perhaps Jesus is telling us here that truth that is not understood and made applicable in our lives will be lost. The proverb, "If you don't use it, you lose it," is so true. Neglect and misuse of a gift, whether truth or youth, means we not only lose the blessing inherent in the gift but we also lose the greater opportunities that would have come our way had we used the gift properly.

We have a very practical God who knows what is best for us. He invests us with abilities and opportunities and the courage to use them. He wants us to light this poor dark world with whatever aptitudes he graciously gives us. If we don't take advantage of the opportunities, we will wake up one day and discover that we have wasted time, talent and breaks--and both God and we will be broken-hearted.

“Luke 8:18 lays down the universal law that the man who has will get more; and that the man who has not will lose what he has. If a man is physically fit and keeps himself so, his body will be ready forever greater efforts; if he lets himself go flabby, he will lose even the abilities he has. The more a student learns, the more he can learn; but if he refuses to go on learning, he will lose the knowledge he has. This is just another way of saying that there is no standing still in life. All the time we are either going forward or going back. The seeker will always find; but the man who stops seeking will lose even what he has” (William Barclay).