In this sermon, the speaker addresses Christians who feel overwhelmed by numerous gifts, passions, and ministry opportunities, leading to indecision and inaction. He argues that the real problem is not a lack of direction but an overabundance of pursuits that cause fear of choosing the wrong path. Using the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14‑30), he illustrates the principle of stewardship: God entrusts each believer with unique gifts and expects them to invest those gifts rather than hide them out of fear. He emphasizes that God does not provide a detailed roadmap for each gift; instead, believers are to act, trusting that the Holy Spirit will correct them as they go—“go until I say wait.” The speaker cites the missionary journeys of Paul and Silas as examples of Spirit‑led movement and redirection. He outlines a practical approach: identify a specific passion, become diligent in that area, and remain prayerful and Scripture‑focused so the Holy Spirit can provide ongoing guidance. The sermon concludes with a prayer for clarity and sensitivity to the Spirit, an invitation for listeners to type “amen,” and a call to financially support the ministry through partnership or donation links.
Chapters
You know what I've noticed? Many Christians spend their whole lives trying to find their purpose, maybe taking spiritual gifts tests, continuously seeking prophetic words from as many ministers as they can meet, or hopping from church to church, yet they just can't seem to find something, anything to do for God. But that's not exactly your problem. You're just the opposite. Your problem is that you may be pursuing too many passions and interests for the glory of God. You serve in many different areas in your church. You want to prophesy, you evangelize to the lost, and maybe you even want to start a podcast to talk about the Lord. You start many great works, but you never stick to it or finish any of them. You look at your life, see a dozen different paths you want to walk on, and end up standing still, terrified of pursuing the wrong calling. But what if you're going about this all wrong? What if you're overthinking your whole approach? Now, this message is going to help you so that you can stop feeling scattered and finally give you clarity on God's specific calling for your life. Let's begin by going to Matthew chapter number 25. I'll begin at verse number 14. Again, the kingdom of heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. He called together his servants and entrusted his money to them, Well, he was gone. That man in the story represents the heavenly Father. Those servants represent God's servants, and the money he gives them represents the gifts that God has given to you. God has given you time. God has given you ability. God has given you influence. God has given you breath. God has given you many different responsibilities. He gave 5 bags of silver to one, 2 bags of silver to another, and 1 bag of silver to the last, dividing it in proportion to their abilities. He then left on his trip. Everyone's going to get something different from God. God gives different gift sets to each one of his children, and he's given you a very unique gift set as well. How are you going to use what God has given to you? The servant who received the 5 bags of silver began to invest the money and earn 5 more. The servant with 2 bags of silver also went to work and earned 2 more. But the servant who received the 1 bag of silver dug a hole in the ground and hid the master's money. Verse 19, after a long time, their master returned from his trip and called them to give an account of how they had used his money. The servant to whom he had entrusted the 5 bags of silver came forward with 5 more and said, master, you gave me 5 bags of silver to invest, and I have earned 5 more. the master was full of praise. Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount. So now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let's celebrate together. The servant who had received the 2 bags of silver came forward and said, Master, you gave me 2 bags of silver to invest, and I have earned 2 more. The master said, Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount. So now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let's celebrate together. Now the servant with the one bag of silver came and said, Master, I knew you were a harsh man. So already he's starting with excuses. Now, can you imagine being that servant who did absolutely nothing? He's watching as the 2 before him were rewarded and praised. They were given much more than he had, but they did something with it. He instead is filled with excuses. Master, I knew you were a harsh man harvesting crops you didn't plant and gathering crops you didn't cultivate. I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth. Look, here is your money back. But the master replied, you wicked and lazy servant. Now that seems like a harsh response. I know that it seems that way, but this is actually a righteous response. Here we have a servant who was given something. And because of fear, he hid it in the ground. Now he may have thought he would have received praise. Maybe, I don't know. Or maybe he thought, at least I didn't lose anything. And I gave back what he had given to me. But no, the master replies, you wicked and lazy servant. If you knew I harvested crops I didn't plant and gathered crops I didn't cultivate, why didn't you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it. Then he ordered, take the money from this servant and give it to the one with the 10 bags of silver. To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away. Now throw this useless servant into outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. So there is a prophetic message here that Jesus is delivering, but the spiritual principle that he uses to deliver that prophetic message is, the principle of stewardship. God gives to each one of his servants something. And this wicked and lazy servant hid what he had because he was afraid. He was afraid of doing the wrong thing. So instead he did nothing. Does that sound like many Christians? Well, we get so worked up, we become afraid. We say, God, there are many things that I wanna do for you. There are many gifts that you've deposited in me. And so, because there's so much before me, because there are so many paths I can take, sometimes I get a little nervous, worrying that I might miss the call of God and make the Lord angry. Now notice something here though. The master did not give them specific instructions. He just gave them investments. He did not give them a specific roadmap. He just gave them talents. God doesn't necessarily give to us A specific written out every word, every path, every choice map. God has given you gifts. God has given you talents. God has given you ability. And so you must take what God has given to you and focus, channel what he's given you into his ultimate will. What do I mean by that? Well, in the Old Testament, it was more often, wait until I say go. In the New Testament, it is more often, go until I say wait. Next, Paul and Silas traveled to the area of Phrygia and Galatia, because the Holy Spirit had prevented them from preaching the word in the province of Asia at that time. Then coming to the borders of Mysia, they headed north to the province of Bithynia. But again, the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them to go there. So instead they went on through Mysia to the seaport of Troas. So here the Holy Spirit is saying, no, don't go there. So we know that they didn't necessarily pray about this. We know that they weren't so obsessed with possibly missing the call of God that they didn't do anything. Why? Because as they went, they were corrected. Had they prayed about it, the Holy Spirit would have told them to never go in the first place. But instead they saw a need and then tried to fill it. Then God ultimately redirects them. So instead they went on through Mysia to the seaport of Troas. That night Paul had a vision. A man from Macedonia in Northern Greece was standing there pleading with them, come over to Macedonia and help us. So we decided to leave for Macedonia at once, having concluded that God was calling us to preach the good news there. They were guided as they went. God guides as you go. So we know the general will of God, live holy, worship sincerely, pray continuously, read the word of God diligently, serve humbly, love selflessly, evangelize boldly, These are the general commands of God that we see in Scripture. Every believer ought to be doing what the Bible says. That's the general instructions. Use the gifts he gave you, spread the gospel. And God has given to each one of us a unique set of gifts. He's given you talents, he's given you energy, he's given you a certain kind of personality, he's given you a certain sphere of influence. Now, your job is to take the specific gifts that God has given to you, to fulfill his general mandate. Remember in the story, the parable of the talents, the master didn't say, here's what you're gonna do with the money I give you. Go and invest it in this bank, then you're gonna put it in this business. No, he just said, here's something, now do something. And that's what he's saying to you. So never mind with this fear that maybe I might do the wrong thing, because you can trust that if you do start doing the wrong thing, if you do go too far off the path, that the Holy Spirit will correct you. but he guides as you go, you have to get moving. So you are called to use your specific gifts to fulfill God's general commands. So you may feel like you have all these things you're doing because you're so afraid of missing the call of God. So you're trying all of these different things, just be fruitful, just be effective. Just find something where you see fruitfulness and continue to give yourself over to that. Just find where you're passionate. Your purpose is often linked with your passion. Find where God has given you passion, and then serve in that area with great diligence. And if for some reason you veer off the path, if for some reason you get too focused on something God doesn't want you focused on, then as long as you live a lifestyle of prayer and reading the Word, the Holy Spirit will speak to you. You'll be sensitive to his voice, and you'll be able to hear those loving corrections. But in the meantime, do what's before you. Be fruitful. Be effective. Find a need and fill it. In order to become dynamic, you must first become specific. Find something specific, become fruitful, and watch God bless you for it. Now, Father, in the name of Jesus, I lift that one to you now who desires to know what your specific will is for their life. And I pray, precious Holy Spirit, that you would begin to empower them according to the gifts that you've placed within them. Help them not to overthink the Yes, Lord. Help them to see the needs and to fill the needs. Help them to be fruitful where you've gifted them. Use them as they serve your kingdom with great passion and diligence. Use them as they steward what you've deposited in their lives. I pray, fill them with your power. Give them clarity of mind. May they be sensitive to the voice of the Holy Spirit and guide them as they go. In the mighty name of Jesus, we pray. And if you truly receive that prayer, then I want you to type amen in the comment section right now. Well, if you've been blessed by this ministry, then I'm asking you now to pay it forward and help us reach more people with the gospel of Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit. When you support this ministry, You are helping to fund the media that we create, the events that we host around the world, and the church planting projects that we plant all around the United States. So get involved today, do your part, don't count yourself out. There's no gift so small that it doesn't matter, and there's no gift so large that we wouldn't know what to do with it. Give today with your most generous gift by going to davidhernandezministries.com/partner to sign up to become a monthly ministry supporter. You can go to davidhernandezministries.com/donate to give a single gift. And now, if you enjoyed this teaching, then make sure to also check out my teaching, When God Has Set You Apart, People Say These Things About You.
