Until, of course, that difference disappears. That's what happened to me when I moved out to attend Ambassador Bible Center in Cincinnati. Suddenly, I found in everyone around me the defining characteristics that had set me apart from the world. And just like that, I realized—I was nothing special. The principle here is simple: a light shining in the darkness is impossible to ignore, while a light shining among other lights—though it certainly adds to the effect—is indistinguishable as a separate entity. The Standard That Counts That got me thinking—back home, there was little driving me to go above and beyond the required minimum, since that alone put me head and shoulders above most. But here's the thing: God couldn't care less about where we are in relation to everyone else. He cares about where we are in relation to Him. His laws. His statutes. His judgments. Christ told His disciples that no servant is thanked for doing what he is commanded to do, concluding that "likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, 'We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do'" (Luke 17:10). From Useless to Useful It's true that when God starts working with us, we're nothing special—but in Malachi 3:17, God says of His followers, "'They shall be Mine,' says the LORD of hosts, 'on the day that I make them My jewels.'" God intends to make us jewels. In the margin of many New King James Bibles is a note that "jewels" literally means "special treasure"—quite a transformation for a people who were originally the foolish, weak and base things of the world (1 Corinthians 1:27-28). Moving Forward So how do we get from here to there? The answer lies in the parable of the talents (or minas) recorded in both Matthew 25:14-29 and Luke 19:11-27. A master entrusts three of his servants with varying amounts of money and bids them, "Do business till I come" (Luke 19:13). When the master returns, he finds that only two of his servants have taken his command seriously and increased their funds. The other, out of laziness or fear, buried his money in the ground. While he had not lost anything, he certainly had not gained anything, either. This servant is cast into outer darkness for being "wicked and lazy" (Matthew 25:26, 29). Likewise our Master, Jesus Christ, has entrusted us with certain gifts—most notably, God's Holy Spirit. When Christ returns, He expects to find us exercising what we were given to its fullest potential—not leaving it buried in the ground. We are encouraged to be striving to go above and beyond what we've been given to do. At no point can we afford to become complacent or measure ourselves by any standard but God's. Right now we may not be considered very special. However, God has entrusted each of us with individual talents that set us apart. If we are willing to develop and use them, we are on our way to becoming God's special treasures. UN