But God said to him, ‘You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you; and the things you have prepared, to whom will they belong?’

Luke 12:20

If you died tonight, would your affairs be in order? Not your legal or business affairs, but you’re spiritual ones. The concept of memento mori forces us to contemplate the concept of death and dying, more specifically the phrase “remember that you must die.” With the concept of death before us not as a gruesome secular fate, but as one of eternal glory, the reminder can help us get back to what’s important in the here and now.

The rich man in the parable of today’s gospel decided to build larger barns to store his overflow of grain. His thought was that he would have extras for many years, and be able to rest from his duties, knowing he had grains in reserve.

Jesus is giving us a stark reminder to get busy with storing up heavenly things, not worldly ones, while we prepare for the glory of eternity with God. He is also reminding us that worldly possessions may mean something in this world, but mean nothing to God.

There are no storage trailers parked at gravesites

You may be asking, how then do I store up heavenly treasures? There are many ways to do this.

For starters, you can give to your parish or a poorer parish that you know needs the help. You can invest your time at a pregnancy crisis center or with St. Vincent De Paul handing out food. Domestically, mothers can choose to spend more quality time with their children rather than worrying about taking their families on vacations that they simply cannot afford. Our time, talent, and treasure matter to God in the context of the Kingdom, not the world.

Today, make your eternal move forward. Pick one item in which you know you are choosing God over yourself.

Then you too will hear those words, well done good and faithful servant!