Untapped accounts …

Imagine trying to live life with a hefty bank account without ever tapping into it.

Now that would be difficult!

How would you buy groceries, pay the rent or mortgage, put clothes on your back, take the kids to the doctor and see them through school without being able to withdraw resources from your account? You couldn’t, and you would suffer mightily for it.

That’s similar to what the church is experiencing today. God has blessed Christians in great ways, yet many refuse to tap into the resources He has provided for them to use in service to Him.

Here are three key ways Christians today are not using God’s blessings to reach the lost:

1. Untapped Talent – The church is brimming with men and women who have great talents that could benefit the mission of the church, yet we struggle to get anyone to be willing to hand out bulletins at the door. I know many gifted and talented people who say things like, “I’m waiting for the kids to grow up” or “I’m waiting for things to calm down at work” or “I’m waiting for my schedule to open up” before they will fully use their talents for the kingdom of God. In the process of waiting, the church — and the world — suffers.

Luke 8:16 says, “No one lights a lamp and then covers it with a bowl or hides it under a bed. A lamp is placed on a stand, where its light can be seen by all who enter the house.” Just as a lamp isn’t blessed with light to be hidden away, Christians aren’t blessed by God with talent only to be used in all areas other than the church. God’s design is for each of us to draw fully on our talent account to build the kingdom of God.

2. Untapped Capacity – Luke 12:16-20 says, “Then he told them a story: A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. He said to himself, ‘What should I do? I don’t have room for all my crops.’ Then he said, ‘I know! I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. Then I’ll have room enough to store all my wheat and other goods. And I’ll sit back and say to myself, “My friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink, and be merry!”’ But God said to him, ‘You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?’”

Many Christians are like the farmer: they have full barns, but instead of putting to use that capacity for building the kingdom of God, they’re busy building greater capacity! They’re waiting on getting “enough” before they draw from their capacity account. The problem is arriving at a place when we think we finally have enough.

3. Untapped Intentions – As we’re fine tuning our talents and building our capacity, we develop ideas as to how we will, some day, use these things for God. We have good intentions.

In Luke 9:57-62 we read this: “As they were walking along, someone said to Jesus, ‘I will follow you wherever you go.’ But Jesus replied, ‘Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place even to lay his head.’ He said to another person, ‘Come, follow me.’ The man agreed, but he said, ‘Lord, first let me return home and bury my father.’ But Jesus told him, ‘Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead! Your duty is to go and preach about the Kingdom of God.’ Another said, ‘Yes, Lord, I will follow you, but first let me say good-bye to my family.’ But Jesus told him, ‘Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God.’”

The problem is, serving God becomes just one of many good intentions. Too often, in our busy-ness of doing good things, we fail to tap into the good intention of building the kingdom.

The church has what it needs to build God’s kingdom, but those resources are stored in you and me. The question is, when will we open the taps?

Are you fully applying your talents in the building of God’s kingdom? Are you putting to use your capacity for reaching the lost and building up the church? Are you harboring, or living out, good intentions?

Scotty