Taking Inventory

 

Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?” And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.” (Luke 12:12-21 ESV).

 

I can remember well this time of the year, working at a big box hardware store, and needing to take inventory before the end of the year. The merchandise that was on pallets stacked at the top of the shelving was easy to “count.” Each box was labeled and unopened. Those counts were easily obtained. However, the items on the lower shelves were a bit more tedious. This was especially true of all the loose fasteners in drawers and bins. I can honestly say that I have never been more challenged by the mundane as when I needed to count each individual nut, bolt, and screw along that aisle!

 

This is a little bit of the background of our reading today. A very successful land owner and farmer had done very well. His life was one great success story. The things he had dreamed about for a lifetime were about to happen. After working hard all his life, he had reached the point where he could take life easy. One more bumper crop, one more expansion of his business, and he was ready to retire and enjoy the rewards of a lifelong effort to make the grade. And who could blame him? When you’ve worked hard all your life and you have managed to build up your investment portfolio, when you have faithfully added to your 401K and have done well in your career or business, you feel you have earned the right to say, “The time has come to take it easy.” You feel you have laid up plenty of good things for many years. What could be wrong with that?

 

In the parable of the rich fool, the Lord answers that question. There’s nothing wrong with enjoying some of the fruits of our labors. But the rich fool had missed the point of his life: he had not been rich toward God. As we near the end of this year in particular, we should take a serious inventory of our lives. And, it should not be a mere totaling of the “stuff” we have; it ought to include what we have done with the “stuff.” Have we used God’s blessings to bless others; or, have we merely saved it for the “rainy day”?