What’s your capacity for responsibility?

The capacity to carry and execute responsibility is a valued quality. It’s something that’s rare. It’s the capacity to faithfully steward duties and privileges assigned in an honorable and effective way. Responsible people take their jobs and assignments seriously. They put their whole heart into the things they’re given to handle or do, and treat what belongs to another with great care, conscientiousness, honor and respect, as though it was their own.

The capacity to handle responsibility is one of the marks of maturity. It’s a sign that people are ready for more. Responsible people not only get bigger opportunities, they also receive bigger blessings. They’re promotable, bless-able, usable and desirable to have on a team, in a company or serving in an organization.

One of the key questions asked by employers, supervisors, teachers, coaches, pastors and leaders is “How can I wisely choose people to employ, promote or entrust with responsibility?”

Jesus gave us the answer to this question.  He taught us what to look for in people who have capacity for responsibility. Here is His wisdom:

Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much … — Luke 16:10 (NIV)

If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones … — Luke 16:10 (NLT)

Jesus said the real test for someone’s capacity for greater responsibility is how they handle little things. This seems counterintuitive. It would seem that, if you want to give someone bigger responsibilities you would evaluate how they handle really big things.

Jesus said no. The greatest insight we get for how someone will handle big things is to watch how they handle little things — the smaller responsibilities they’ve been given.

This is a key principle for determining the capacity of people for increased work responsibility, Kingdom and ministry responsibility, or organizational responsibility. A lot of pain and problems would be avoided if we took time to observe faithfulness in little things before we appointed, promoted or employed people.

What makes you promotable, bless-able, usable and desirable as a team member? Capacity for responsibility. How is this measured? It’s seen in what you do with what you’ve already been given. It’s seen in how you handle the little things — the little duties, the little attitudes, the little jobs that are behind the scenes, the little things that are easy to avoid or ignore. Little is big with God!

Want to be promotable? Always be faithful in the little things and you’ll be prepared for bigger things!

Pastor Dale

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