As Christians, we hear the word stewardship a lot. We are told that we are the stewards of the wealth that God has granted us but how many of us really know what a steward is. Ben Patterson states in his book, “The Grand Essentials”;

“A steward is someone entrusted with another’s wealth or property and charged with the responsibility of managing it in the owner’s best interest.”

The first time I read that sentence it seemed to me to be exactly what I had always assumed a steward was. But after reading it a few more times something struck me.  A steward is “charged with the responsibility of managing it in the owner’s best interest”. After some thought, I had to apply that to my own life. Have I really been managing the money and possessions that God has entrusted me with in HIS best interest, or have I merely been using what he put me in charge of to better my own lifestyle and fund my own retirement while saving a few scraps for the less fortunate so that could give some of the glory to God?

That thought brought to mind the parable of the ten minas in Luke 19:11-27.

A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return. So he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas. ‘Put this money to work,’ he said, ‘until I come back.’ But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him to say ‘We don’t want this man to be our king. He was made king, however, and returned home. Then he sent for the servants to whom he had given the money, in order to find out what they had gained with it. The first one came and said, ‘Sir, your mina has earned ten more.’ ‘Well done, my good servant!’ his master replied. “Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of more.’ The second came and said, ‘Sir you mina has earned five more.’ His master answered, ‘You take charge of five cities.’ Then another servant came and said, ‘Sire, here is you mina; I have kept it laid away in a piece of cloth. I was afraid of you, because you are a hard man. You take out what you did not put in and reap what you did not sow.’ His master replied, ‘I will judge you by your own words, you wicked servant! You knew, did you, that I am a hard man, taking out what I did not put in and reaping what I did not sow? Why then didn’t you put my money on deposit, so that when I come back, I could have collected it with interest?’ Then he said to shoes standing by, ‘Take his mina away and give it to the one who has ten minas.’ ‘Sir,’ they said, ‘he already has ten!’ He replied, ‘I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but as for the one who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away. But those enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them – bring them here and kill them in front of me.’   (Luke 19:11-27 NIV)

After reading this I have to admit that even thought I knew what the definition of a steward was, there was a part of me that was translating it poorly into practice. While I’ve understood that the things I have were not mine, I tended to treat them more as a business expense account then the Lords personal belongings. I take some out of the account to afford my lifestyle along with the occasional cost of living raise needed to maintain my standard of living, all while making sure that there is still enough left to give some to the Lords work. I take from the account believing that it’s alright; the Lord owns everything so there is more where that came from, giving little thought to the fact that my habits and responsibilities are constantly being evaluated and taken into account for what I will be entrusted with later. It’s easy to recognize that what we tithe and give away is the Lords but we don’t always remember that the money we use to support our families, the cars we drive and the house that we live in are also the Lords. He gives it to us so that we can glorify him through our management of his belongings and he will reward us, or not, for our management of those belongings when we give an account to him.