Friday, July 30, 2010

Be Both Wise and Happy

The other day on the radio, I heard that many of us are not saving enough money for retirement. We are spending but not saving. In short, we are very foolish, for the day will come when we find ourselves in a financial crunch. We are very unwise.

In today’s Gospel, we hear the story of a rich man who does just the opposite. He saves and he stores away tremendous wealth for the future. Yet Jesus calls him a fool. He is a fool because he saves his wealth for himself only. He was selfish. He should have spent some of his wealth on the poor and the needy. Had he been generous with his wealth, he would have been storing up riches in heaven. He would have been a wise man and a good steward of God’s gifts.

Let us pray for the grace to become better stewards of God’s gifts. Certainly we have to save for our future financial needs and not waste money on frivolous pleasures. But we also need to be generous in giving of our time, talent, and treasure to God. Then we will be both wise and happy.

- Fr. Carl