Don't Waste Your Life

How would your life be different if you had inherited a vast fortune at the age of 18? Suppose that you had earned a Masters Degree from Cambridge University, been elected as a Member of the British Parliament at age 21, and that you were the Prime Minister’s closest friend. Imagine being labelled by a famous writer as the “wittiest man in England” and that your speaking ability in the House of Commons was described as follows: “I saw what seemed a mere shrimp mount upon the table; but as I listened, he grew and grew, until the shrimp became a whale.”

Given the above, what would your life look like today? What would be possible in the future?

There was once a man who fitted this description, but his life was squandered in gambling and late night drinking. Inheritances and natural abilities are not one’s right nor are they earned or deserved. Yet left to their own devices, humans declare, “It is my life, and I will do with it as I please”. And William Wilberforce was no exception. He was living life exactly as he pleased.

But fortunately for us all, God did not leave Wilberforce to his own devices. At the age of 26, the Glorious Intruder turned William’s life upside down. William Wilberforce was converted by God, and he began waking early to pray, study the Bible and write in a private journal. Overwhelmed by the futility and waste of his past life, Wilberforce resolved to commit his future life and work to the service of God. As a result, the world is a different place today. Slavery is illegal, so is cruelty to animals and child labour – to name but a few of the fruits of Wilberforce’s life-work.

You might say my resources and talents are meagre compared to those of Wilberforce; how could my life make a difference to anything?  It is not the quantity or quality of what you have to invest that counts but whether you invested it or not. The man who earned a return on the two talents he had received from his master got the same complement as the man who had received and invested five: “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!” (Mat. 25:14-30).

What has been given varies from person to person but the purpose is the same. Your life and talents are a divine bequest and God expects you to invest them in the work He has planned for you. And your life’s-work will make an eternal difference. I don’t know about you, but I look forward to hearing my Dad saying, “Well done, good and faithful servant... come and share your master’s happiness!”

Cheers for now - Ian