18th Sunday in Ordinary Time

What Truly Matters: The Treasure of Time

On this 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time, our readings comes to us with a challenge that speaks directly to our modern world: where do we place our treasure? What do we value most? And what are we really living for?

In today’s Gospel, we hear the parable of a rich man who experiences an abundant harvest. Feeling secure, he tears down his barns to build larger ones to hold all his goods and tells himself, ‘You have plenty stored up for years to come. Relax, eat, drink, and be merry.’ But God calls him a fool and reminds him that his life will be demanded of him that very night. All his plans, all his treasures, amount to nothing in the face of eternity.

This Gospel is often interpreted as a warning against the love of money and the danger of materialism. And rightly so. But there is something even deeper we must reflect on — not just the things we possess, but the time we are given.

Of all the treasures God entrusts to us, few are more valuable than time. Time is a gift that cannot be stored up, cannot be bought or replaced. Once it is spent, it is gone. And yet, it is this very gift that so many of us find hardest to part with. Unlike money, which we might give a portion of to charity, or possessions which we may donate, many of us fiercely guard our time. We call it ‘my time’ and often use it mostly for our own wants, our own comfort, and sometimes even our own distractions.

Today, many consume themselves with countless hours on the internet, social media, and entertainment. I think of what I said over 25 years ago when I first began my internet ministry: ‘We need to take control over the internet before it takes control over us.’ Sadly, for many, the opposite has happened. The internet now dictates how we spend our time. What was meant to be a tool has become a trap.

We have been given a treasure in time — precious moments in which we can love others, serve, pray, grow, listen, learn, and enrich our souls. But how often do we squander this gift as the rich man did with his goods? Instead of barns, many now build digital silos — spending hour after hour scrolling, clicking, watching, consuming — and then wonder why their hearts feel so empty, so restless.

Saint Paul in today’s second reading reminds us to seek what is above, not what is on earth — to put to death whatever belongs to our earthly nature, and to clothe ourselves with the new self. This includes not only letting go of material desires but also surrendering our time, our schedules, and our priorities to God.

St. Augustine once said, ‘God has made us for Himself, and our hearts are restless until they rest in Him.’ You can have all the wealth and all the free time in the world, and yet your heart can still be restless — unless that time is given in part back to God and to others.

So today, let us ask: What do I treasure most? How am I using the time God has given me? Do I give an hour to God in prayer — or do I fill that hour with countless distractions? Do I make time for my family, for silence, for acts of kindness? Or has my time become entirely my own — shielded, guarded, and wasted?

Let us not be like the rich fool, building bigger barns, always reaching for more, yet losing what matters most. Let us instead use every moment wisely, investing in what is eternal: love, compassion, faith, service, and trust in God.

May we surrender our time back to the One who gave it, so that, when our own time is demanded of us, we may be rich in what truly matters to God.