Ironically, I’d recently dreamed about being in stewardess training. I guess that was God’s way of showing His sense of humor—reminding me that yes, I am in training.

Maybe not in the sky, but right here on earth, learning to steward well what He’s entrusted to me. I was all ears.

The Parable Of The Talents

Jesus speaks about stewardship in the parable of the three servants, each entrusted with a different amount of talents.

Spoiler alert: the two servants who were commended had invested and multiplied theirs.

By the way, “talents” originally referred to money, but it can represent anything we’ve been entrusted with—our life, body, relationships, home, finances, work, belongings, and even the people who cross our path each day.
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What’s holding us back? 

The servant who, let’s say, failed the test, hid his single talent out of fear toward the master:

“For I was afraid of you, because you are an exacting man; you take up what you did not lay down and reap what you did not sow.” (Luke 19:21) 

Fear, perhaps along with resentment and comparison — knowing he’d received the least — kept him from doing the one job he had been given.

Stewardship is a mindset of love, care, generosity, gratitude

So, if the secret of the faithful servant was to invest and multiply, how do we do that?

We multiply what we’ve been given when we use our time, energy, and resources not just to manage—but to bless, improve, and grow what’s in our hands.

“…Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless.”  

We don’t set out to give in order to get, and we don’t always receive our return from the same source.  But God keeps the books, and He’s generous:

“Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”  –Luke 6:38

Let me put on my nerd-cap for a moment…

“Steward” comes from Old English—someone who manages what isn’t theirs.

The Dutch word rentmeester means the same thing: someone who managed land and collected income on behalf of someone else. Rente meant “yield” and connects to the English word rent, which comes from the Latin reddita, meaning “given back.” 

Rent wasn’t just a payment—it was a return for using something you didn’t own. Other words for steward include manager, overseer, or simply, caretaker.
Okay, nerd-cap off again. 😉

Understanding stewardship historically and linguistically adds spiritual depth.

 
Just as stewards managed what wasn’t theirs, Adam and Eve were placed in the garden not to own it, but to care for creation… we know how the story ended, but still, it can be a struggle to be good stewards in our present, daily lives. But it helps to think of it this way.. .

What if everything we have is a gift from God?

Psalm 24:1  says the following: 

“The earth is the LORD’s, and everything in it, the world and all who live in it.” 

When we being to see everything we have as a gift from God, it brings both gratitude and responsibility. We are now accountable for how we treat it all — which suddenly puts our mom’s advice to “leave each place (and person) better than you found it” in a whole new light.

Of course we don’t need to track every second of our lives like a spreadsheet. God invites us to not just invest but also to rest, to enjoy, to breathe. But it does add meaning to how intentionally we care for what we’ve been given.

“We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us… If it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is giving, then give generously…” — Romans 12:6–8

Thinking this way motivates me to learn what it means to ‘invest and multiply’ in every area: from home to work, friendships to finances, faith to everyday moments. So that one day we too will hopefully hear the words spoken to the two servants who passed the test:

“Well done, you good and faithful servant.”

Is there an area in your life where you feel God calling you to steward more intentionally? Let’s encourage eachother in the comments!