Well done good and faithful servant … come on in and share my happiness” – Matthew 25:23.

The parable of the talents teaches that we need to be productive with the resources with which we have been entrusted.

A simplistic reading of this might lead one to think of this in terms of financial multiplication, but I think it is much more about investing for The Kingdom of God, and that isn’t denominated in pounds, Euros or dollars.

I also find this parable immensely challenging, for like most of us in modern Britain, I have been blessed with great wealth compared to the vast masses of poor in the world.

Will I receive the above affirmation, or will I be like the man who buried his talent in the ground?

The parable applies to everything with which we have been blessed, but it has special implications for our money.

The conventional wisdom is to invest money so as to maximise return within given risk parameters, with no real consideration of how that is achieved.

Yet, everything is God’s, including our money, and not just the bit we choose to give to the Church or charity.

How we use the rest is possibly more important in helping to build the Kingdom and it is now possible to invest in ventures whose key purpose is to deliver social outcomes as well as a financial return.

So why not ask yourself the question: ‘How is my money building the Kingdom of God’, and see what opportunities emerge.

John Fleetwood, St. Thomas Church, Kendal