The Parable of the Talents comes to mind here for me. We all know it and try to live by it. It seems easy enough. We are counseled to share our talents by serving others. Don�t just hide your talent where it can't grow.

But sometimes I think we gloss over the reality of the investing the servants in the parable had to do to earn a profit. In order to make those two or five talents, they had to put their money, their time and energy at risk.

Sure, it�s great when you win. But sometimes you lose.

And I�m not talking about a competition here.

When we put our talents out there to share with the world there is an inherent risk to our spirituality we should always be aware of. Invest wisely. Positive payoffs are great, but don't take too big of a risk, because the cost might be very difficult to repay.

Quick Notes

My friends (and up-the-street neighbors) Melanie and Roger Hoffman have a new children�s album out on Shadow Mountain Records. "Stories of Jesus" features 15 original songs about the life of the Savior designed to both entertain and teach. The cheerful lyrics and memorable melodies had me singing the rest of the day — I guess I�m still a kid at heart.

And this is really cool. A growing collection of LDS music to enjoy online (or download): Liahona.net's "purpose is to provide wholesome and uplifting music and other content without charge through the Internet."

(Quint Randle was born and raised in Southern California and has been a music journalist and songwriter for more than 25 years. He is now a faculty member in the BYU Communications Department. He has co-written two No. 1 songs in the Christian-Country market and still moonlights as a member of the award-winning duo Joshua Creek. He founded Gig Magazine and has written for Mix Magazine, Recording Engineer/Producer and Guitar Player. He also co-authored the book "Making Money Making Music.")