On Antiques, Gifts, and Talents

By Iola Goulton

Paeroa is a small town not far from where I live. It has two claims to fame. It’s the home of L&P, our national soft drink which is World Famous in New Zealand. (I wrote a blog post explaining the history of L&P here.) It's other claim to fame is newer, yet older.

Paeroa is famous for its antique shops.

My husband and I visited some of those antique shops recently. We weren’ t looking for anything in particular—we were driving through Paeroa on one of our weekend drives, and decided to stop and look. It was an interesting afternoon, but one which left me feeling somewhat sad.

Some of the shops were small and cramped, filled with an eclectic mix of china, cutlery, glassware, clothes, books, tools, and telephones all mixed in together. Some items were definitely antique, while others looked more like second-hand—old and tired. Other shops were larger and more spacious, with different spaces for different categories of goods for sale.

There were many beautiful things for sale—some of which were familiar as items I remember seeing in my grandmother’s house when I was a child. A lot of the prices seemed more than reasonable, especially considering what items of comparable quality would cost today–and what the items themselves would have cost when new.

There were complete china dinner sets, with eight or twelve settings. Silver cutlery sets in beautiful presentation cases. Glass and crystal fine enough to grace any table. Classic brands such as Wedgewod, Royal Albert, and Crown Lynn. Everything was in perfect condition, even the “everyday” crockery.

Yet it was all sitting in a what was essentially a junk shop. Unused.

I wondered why. People had paid good money for these beautiful things, these beautiful unused things. I thought of my crockery at home—plates covered in knife marks, some newer than others because we’ve bought new pieces over the years to replace those pieces which have been chipped or broken.

I thought of my cutlery set, a wedding present which hasn’t had all eight pieces in a long time. The teaspoon monster strikes often in our house. And I wondered …

All these beautiful things. Had they ever been used?

Were they unwanted gifts, stored in the back of a cupboard for years, forgotten, then sold or given away when the owners moved house (or moved into an old folks’ home). Were they precious pieces, bought for “best”, and never used for fear of breaking the delicate china?

Either way, it seems like a waste.

People spent hours earning the money to buy these things which were rarely or never used. Then they were packaged up and sent off to an antique shop—donated, or sold for a fraction of their original price. I hope the original owners got some enjoyment out of these items, gifts or not.

Because to receive a gift and never use it is a waste.

To have a talent and never use it is a waste.

It reminded me of the gifts we’ve been given—not so much the physical gifts we receive for Christmas and birthdays, but the gifts God has given us. Too often, we waste or squander what we’ve been given.

That too is a waste.

May we remember to use and appreciate our God-given gifts and talents. May we not waste them or squander them by leaving them sitting on a shelf until it’s too late.

And the Gift of Salvation. May we never waste or squander that gift.

About Iola Goulton

I am a freelance editor specialising in Christian fiction. Visit my website at www.christianediting.co.nzto download a comprehensive list of publishers of Christian fiction. 

I also write contemporary Christian romance with a Kiwi twist—find out more at www.iolagoulton.com.

You can also find me on:
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GIFTS AND ABILITIES



After completing her nursing training, Mary met her husband, Ray, at Bible college 50 years ago. They have ministered in churches in Australia, two years in England and now enjoy living in Tasmania. Mary has had 19 titles published and Ray has five devotional books out also.

Web and blog: http://www.mary-hawkins.com






The joy of receiving that first book

I’m currently trying to prepare a Bible study for an elective at a Christian women’s conference on “Wisdom in the way you develope your gifts and abilities”. I intend to share about spiritual gifts God gives for His specific purposes too but on this blog want to focus on talents we have been given as natural parts of our personalities from birth.
There is so much to share but where to start has been difficult to decide. Sounds like that first sentence, first paragraph of our novels?

The first thing before we can ever develope our abilities – which I think most of us would call natural talents – is to discover just what they are. There are many who may be multi-talented but is there one that stands out, one that God wants developed so He can use it to bless others and glorify Himself? For some, discovering this may be easy, but I suggest there are many folk who take their lives so much for granted they don’t stop and wonder about any specific one they have which God wants them to develope for His specific purposes.

I was certainly one such person. As many of you may have heard before, it was not until I was thirty years old I had any idea about writing more than my diary and letters. Would these years of being a published author ever have happened if my husband had not read my diary and simply told me, “You have a talent for writing, what are you going to do about it?”

But was that really the beginning of my writing career? What if I’d never met that wonderful man? What if I’d never had a Dad who wrote diaries and thus inspired a fourteen year old to start her own? What if I had never enjoyed books, never become an avid reader long before I was fourteen?

For me as a committed Christian, it ultimately goes back to the time I completely surrended my life, my will, all that I was and could ever hope to be to my Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. For me, it was my husband He used to show me a talent I had never considered before, never realised it should be developed, refined, worked hard at so He could use it where and how, and even more importantly when He wants to.

Over the years I have been saddened when I have met lovely Christians who obviously have a real talent in some specific area but shrug off any suggestion of trying to develope it. Because I am a published author, I’ve heard this said too many times about becoming a writer, but also from talented people in many other arenas. The reasons are many and varied. While some are definitely quite valid, the ones that concern me and even grieve me are ones like, “Me? I could never be as good as...” And then they mention someone in that area of expertise they know of who has achieved success.

When thinking about this journey of mine I glanced at my bookshelf and there was that Famous Writers Course set of books. It was supposed to take me eighteen months full time but becoming pregnant and moving to minister at another church meant they let me take four years. This is the list of assignments and I noticed that the last few were in 1974. Seems nearly a lifetime away now. Only the deep knowledge that this was indeed what God wanted me to do kept me persevering all that time. Then I discovered it was only that first "step" to have my first published novel in the photo above. That took too many years to write but then thirteen years before that pile of books above fnally arrived.
Some of the biggest reasons for not wanting to recognise a talent that should be developed include the fear of failure, not being prepared to do the hard work to improve, and perhaps the most important one of all is the lack of perseverance when the rejections and criticism of our efforts come. If God wants that talent, that ability he has given, to be used by Him, not to do so is simply disobedience and that earns a heavy price.

And that perseverance is certainly something we writers know only too well we must deal with. How do we persevere? Why should we persevere? The specific answers are many and varied for each person but I know personally it is because I know this is what God wants of Mary Hawkins. Because of my intimate relationship with Jesus, He has been and remains my comforter, my guide, my strength, my all in all. But He does use not only the Scriptures but fellowship with His people to bring me all of these. I can only pray that perhaps He has used me too to help others as they seek to obey Him in developing their talents to glorify Him and bless and challenge whoever He wants to.