ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE: 33rd Sunday OT A.

POINTING TO THE SAVIOUR OF THE WORLD

Dear friends,
The month of November is dedicated to praying for our loved ones who have died. Most people don’t want to think about the dying process and their own deaths. We are too busy trying to live, that we don’t make time to consider our own death. And the most wonderful thing about death is that one gets a great opportunity to meet Jesus. But first we will be judged as to how we used all the gifts, talents, and graces that God has given us. Fortunately for us, the scriptures can serve to help us prepare for that moment whenever it comes.
In the gospel today Jesus tells us about someone who out of fear buries his talent. He calls him "lazy" and takes away his talent.
On the other hand, Jesus praises the ones who use and increase their talents and gives them a threefold blessing ; "Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master's joy." He tells us that if we recognize where our gifts have come from, talents of music, hospitality, heart for the poor, encouragement, healing, empathy, love of learning, teaching and much more and use them for the glory of the Creator, we receive these three blessings, 1) we become grateful servants 2) we give, to receive even more and finally our retirement is guaranteed, but until then, we are never too old to invest our talents.
The master seem to unfairly chastise the servant who buried his talent in the ground. By this Jesus is speaking to something deep in our human psychology. Each one of us can tend to hold back because we compare ourselves to others. Rather than being scared of using our little talent or comparing ourselves to those who have got more, we should develop an attitude of gratitude. Give thanks to God for our gifts and talents, and ask his help to invest them as best you can.