There is a great lesson to learn from the parable of the talent(Mt 25:14-30). Aside stewardship, accountability, loyalty and the likes, one of the lessons inherent in that parable is learning how to multiply the little you have. Each of those servants were given different talents(sum of money), two traded with theirs and experienced multiplication but one buried it and got nothing.
Most people think talent in that parable referred to endowment or gift. No, it is not. Talent was the name of the currency of that time. Just as we have dollar, yen, pound sterling. It won't be totally wrong to say the parable also gave clues on how God expect us to handle our finances as much as he was teaching other important truths.
In Matthew 25:27( NLT), the masters response to the servant who buried his talent(money) clearly shows that money was the talent given to each of them: "why didn’t you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it". It is only money invested that yields interest, isn't it?
There are three M's that guides money. They are: make, manage and multiply. In previous teachings, we have learnt how to make money by creating value and getting people pay for it. This could be provision of goods&services that people subscribe to. Further, we learnt how to manage money and ensure there are no leaking holes in our pockets. The last in that spectrum is knowing how to multiply money.
On the journey to financial freedom, learning how to multiply money is important. Virtually everyone makes money one way or the other but only few people know how to multiply it. No man is truly free financially until he knows how to multiply money. What differentiates the wealthy from the middle class is money multiplication skill not necessarily money making skill.
Two people can be making money earning the same thing on a job for 35 years but one with multiplication skill will step out of that middle class/ poverty zone into wealth in later years after retirement because he has multiplied the little he earned over time. This is the reason you'll see that every wealthy man on the face of this earth are heavy on investments. They look out for ways to put their money into what will yield bountifully for them in later years. This is a common trend among the wealthy.
I am an not talking about ponzi scheme. Those who do ponzi are greedy. They want quick returns. Anything that promises big quick returns is fraudulent. Wealth is built gradually and it takes time before breaking into the wealth zone. It is a lifelong journey with milestones not necessarily a destination. That is why it takes discipline and ability to delay gratification.
Start your own journey today. Tomorrow will take care of itself If you take care of today with the wisdom of God. Today is all you have, maximize it.
