Faithful stewardship is indeed work, hard work

To quote my alma mater’s creed, “I believe in work, hard work.” Although the Auburn Creed is not scripture based, it sure could be. 
Scripture begins with God’s hard work. In the book of Genesis, God worked for six days and didn’t rest until the seventh day. Then, He put Adam to work to cultivate and care for the garden of Eden. As a matter of fact, we are actually referred to as God’s handiwork. “For we are His handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for the good works that God has prepared in advance, that we should live in them.” (Ephesians 2:10)
We are also reminded of our call to work hard and avoid laziness throughout the book of Proverbs. “The slack hand impoverishes, but the busy hand brings riches.” Proverbs 10:4 “The appetite of the sluggard craves but has nothing, but the appetite of the diligent is amply satisfied.” (Proverbs 13:4)
The message throughout scripture is clear. We can’t sit idle by and expect to accomplish God’s will in our life. We have to work at using our gifts to be good stewards to glorify the Lord and help others. “In every way I have shown you that by hard work of that sort we must help the weak, and keep in mind the words of the Lord Jesus who Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ” (Acts 20:35)
Finally, St. Matthew explains God’s expectations very clearly in The Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30).  The three servants were asked to account for the talents they were given and rewarded for fair returns. This parable describes how working hard at being a good steward with the gifts God has given us will lead us to participation in the fullness of His kingdom. On the flip side, failure to do so, will keep us from His glory. The master’s message to the lazy servant who buried his treasure was: “And throw this useless servant into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.” (Matthew 25:30) As difficult as it may seem sometimes, working hard to use our gifts is well worth the reward. When we reach life’s finish line, don’t we all want God, our master, to say to us: “Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come share your masters joy.” (Matthew 25:23)
— Shannon Roh is the Executive Director of the Office of Development and Stewardship for the Archdiocese of Mobile.