When I went away to college I took along my recording of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto in C Minor. The quiet second movement provided a helpful background by which to study. It had a sense of peace that stilled the confusions and stresses of university life. Two melodic themes from this concerto became popular ballads. One of them was, "Full Moon and Empty Arms," and in it the crooner bewailed his having all the setting for romance, except his beloved. I often wondered if Rachmaninoff approved of this use of his music.

I thought of this ballad when thinking about this Scripture: "The land of a rich man brought forth plentifully ..." This man had it made: "Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; take your ease, eat, drink, be merry." He had that deceptive sense of security that …