“A Barn Too Small for Mercy”

In Luke 12, Jesus tells the story of a rich man whose land yielded an abundant harvest. Rather than share, the man thought only of storing more—tearing down his barns to build bigger ones, saying to himself, “Take life easy; eat, drink, and be merry.” But God said to him, “You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you.”

Now imagine Hassan, a wealthy businessman in a war-ravaged city in Syria. While rockets fell and families fled, Hassan stayed behind—not out of bravery, but to protect his assets. He had stocked his warehouse with food, fuel, and medicine—enough to survive for years.

Each day, he passed women begging for milk for their babies and boys scavenging for scraps. But Hassan tightened his gates. “Let them survive as I did. I planned ahead. They did not.”

Then, one night, a missile struck near his compound. Smoke filled his lungs. As he gasped, surrounded by his unopened stockpiles, the irony screamed—his abundance had become his prison. That night, Hassan’s life was demanded of him.

In the morning, the gates were opened—not by Hassan, but by neighbours who broke in to find his lifeless body. The supplies he hoarded now fed the very children he once turned away

Something to ponder on:
Jesus warns us not against wealth itself, but against the illusion of security in possessions. In a world torn by war, famine, or uncertainty, what we store can either rot—or resurrect life in others. Are we building bigger barns, or opening wider doors?

Prayer:
Lord, teach us to number our days and open our hearts. May we store treasures in heaven through acts of mercy on earth. Amen.