Luke 16:1-18

Jesus told a story about a steward who lost his job due to mismanaging his master's money. Before he left, he settled some of his masters accounts for less than what was owed in order to endear himself to the debtors. His hope was that he would be able to collect on the favors when he was no longer employed. His master saw what he was doing and commended the steward for his shrewdness.

This kind of shrewdness is what Jesus saw as lacking in His followers. We need to take opportunities to do God's work and store up treasure in heaven the same way this dishonest steward secured a place for himself when he realized he was losing his job. This does not mean that we should cheat people, but just that we are always to be looking for circumstances which God places us in where we can do some good. Especially when it seems as though things are going bad, we should look to God for how he can work in our lives at that time.