​Review of Teaching

Shalom Saints,

Opening scene: I am a preteen laying on the carpet between the pews at night trying to sleep, but the “holy rollers” are making so much noise they could awake the dead! The church doors are locked until a certain amount of money is raised. I know, I rattled them earlier as I was wandering around the church looking for a spot to sleep.

My Grandmother is in the long line to give money to the Immortal Rev. Boyd (the title of his biography) and then hear the 3 digit number he is going to whisper in her ear. All the 100+ people are here to maximize their talents the worldly way by playing the 3 digit numbers in the illegal “street numbers.” (It was at least 20 years before the legal Lottery would start in Detroit.)

All the next week, the phones would be buzzing to see if anybody “hit.” All it took was for one person to collect a little money and the lines would fill up for the next go-round with Rev. Boyd. The people prayed that God would let their numbers hit, and played their 3 digit numbers in all combinations. By Rev. Boyd giving out random numbers to that many people, someone was certain to have a “hit.”

Oh! By the way, the Immortal Rev. Boyd died in 1989!

Summary of the Teaching

Arthur started out with an attention getter that broke through my Christian beliefs. The talents are “physical” money or goods. They are not abilities or gifts from the Holy Spirit. He further clarifies that, “The wicked are separated from the wise by what each does with the talents they are given.” Then he heaped some more “food for thought” on my plate: we will have to give an account of the resources that Yehovah has given us! Wow! I guess that even means my splurging money (or mad money) would be called into account.

Another eye-opener was when Arthur asks, “Why would Yehovah trust us with spiritual gifts and power when we can’t even manage the physical gifts and power he has given us?” That is something to think about!

After these preliminaries, that have definitely gotten our attention, Arthur delves into:

• The scriptural definition of a talent
• The resources and wealth Yehovah put on earth for us to use
• Biblical investment goals
• The Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25:14-30

Arthur ends with a great message of hope. If you have mismanaged your resources in the past, the resources the Father has placed in your hands, this is not a time to make excuses. No, it’s a time to repent, a time to implement Biblical principles! All it takes is a change of mind!

Buzz on the Teaching

However, when people know better, they don’t always do better.

Let’s look at my Mother for an example. Ma enjoyed playing the “gigs”, illegal street numbers. She liked figuring out what she thought the 3 digit number would be. I saw the rows of numbers on her legal pad; she had her own algorithm. She tried to explain it to me, but my brain just glossed over. She also had the dream books that she looked up the 3 digits associated with her dreams, friends’ and relative’s dreams. Winning every once in a while was enough to her keep her playing.

Now, my father thought the whole process was senseless because he figured the cash flowed out more than it flowed in. He worked at Chrysler and he also lent money to the workers for $.25 on the dollar. So, you know he wasn’t going to gamble his money away.

Their two minds often clashed. Then Dad thought of an ingenious challenge for Ma in the hopes that she would see the light and give up the “gigs.” He said he would bankroll her playing; he would keep all of the money she bet in a shoe box and when she would win, he would pay her. Even if she won more than the amount of cash in the shoe box, he would pay her out of his pocket. Ma rose to the challenge! She could now prove her methods were valid and get Dad off of her back.

Well….as the experiment proceeded, the cash in the shoe box grew more and more. My Mom grew more and more aggravated. She finally stopped the challenge. Do you think she stopped playing?

No. She continued in spite of the truth being revealed. The emotional high she got whenever she won, outweighed the reality of what she was doing. Dad just accepted it as the way she chose to have fun.

Now Saints, as children of Yehovah, let’s do a critical self-assessment and root out anything that we are attached to that keeps us from looking at reality and keeps us from Maximizing OUR Talents!

Until next time… Blessings to You and Yours,

Sharon

Buy This Teaching Now!

20% OFF FOR A LIMITED TIME!

​