The Parable of the Talents

When Jesus taught the parable of the talents, he made an interesting point. Three servants are given sums of money by their Lord, who goes on a long journey. Two of them are faithful and work hard with the money that is given to them. One of these faithful servants had been given five talents; the other had been given two. When the Lord returned, he found that the servant who had been given five talents had, through trade, made five more, for a total return on investment of 100%. He responded:

21 His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into thejoy of thy lord.

Next, the Lord finds that the servant who had been given two talents had, through trade, made two more, for a total return on investment of 100%. He responded:

23 His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithfulservant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.

Both servants were awarded exactly the same thing.  In other words, these servants' rewards didn't depend on what they had been given, nor even on how much they had, but on how much they made in relation to what they had been given, their return on investment. 

Similarly, while it may seem unfair that some are dealt a poorer hand in this world, in the end that won't matter.  It won't matter in the eternities if you were rich or poor, but whether you were productive or not.  It won't matter if you were popular or ignored, but whether you were kind or ignoring. 

So let's create, let's build, let's inspire, and let's make the most out of what we've been given.  In the end, when this world and everything in it passes away, all we'll have is our ability to create.